A Mottingham prison officer from HMP Belmarsh made nearly £20,000 leaking information to the Daily Mirror about "notorious" inmates, including So Solid Crew rapper Megaman, a court heard.

Grant Pizzey, 50, of Widecombe Road, is on trial at the Old Bailey charged with committing misconduct in public office between December 1 2005 and January 31 2012.

His wife Desra Reilly, 48, also of Widecombe Road, is accused of aiding and abetting him.

Using Reilly - his then girlfriend - as a go-between, the officer allegedly passed tips to Mirror reporter Greig Box Turnbull about the Thamesmead prison's security, as well as some of its more famous inmates.

Reilly first contacted both The Sun and the Daily Mirror in December 2005 with a story about So Solid Crew rapper Dwayne Vincent, stage name Megaman, being found with a mobile phone after he was attacked in Belmarsh.

In a message to The Sun, she wrote: "I have information regarding a security lapse at Belmarsh. 

"Anyone interested?"

Sun journalist James Clothier got back to her, only to be told that the Mirror had been first, the court heard.

Reilly allegedly told him she did not know how much she would be paid by the Mirror and that it would depend on who she dealt with in future.

As well as the "exclusive" about Megaman, she handed over another tip to the Mirror about a smuggled pen gun security scare at Belmarsh, the court heard.

Mr Clothier responded by promising to "top any offer for stories, particularly from the Daily Mirror", jurors were told.

But Reilly went on to receive cheques and transfers to her bank account from the Mirror on 47 separate occasions.

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Prosecutor Julian Christopher QC said some were for stories while others were to keep the source "on side" and encourage more tips in the future.

The relationship developed to the point where Mr Box Turnbull could use Pizzey to confirm information he had heard elsewhere, such as whether Jon Venables was at Belmarsh.

Mr Christopher said: "It is a case about a corrupt relationship between a prison officer and a journalist at the Daily Mirror and a relationship that went on over a period over six years from the end of 2005 up to early 2012 which involved the leaking of information about the prison and about its prisoners for which the prison officer was paid just under £20,000."

Pizzey, who worked as a prison officer at Belmarsh from 2000, was aware he was not allowed to speak to the press, which is why he used Reilly, a railway cafe worker, as the contact, the court heard.

In initial negotiations with the two tabloids, she allegedly wrote: "My source is in a difficult position and wants to know if the financial position is worth the risk."

When the couple were arrested in July 2012, they declined to answer questions in police interview.

Mr Christopher suggested that a key issue in the case was whether this was deliberate misconduct, or whether Reilly alone had made money by passing on information she picked up from "casual conversations" with her partner.

He told jurors they could reject this argument because of the amount of detailed information she had and the "small but telling" indications that they were working together in her emails.

Information provided to Mr Box Turnbull included documents which must have come from the prison, such as a canteen price list, he said.

And in one email Mr Box Turnbull asks specifically when would be a good time for him to ring, and Reilly tells him when Pizzey will be back. 

Pizzey and Reilly deny wrongdoing.

The trial continues.