Inverness Prison governor resigns
INVERNESS Prison governor Angus MacVicar has resigned following what is understood to be alleged inappropriate behaviour.
He could not be contacted last night but the Scottish Prison Service confirmed that Mr MacVicar, who took over at Porterfield in 2010 and had been in the prison service since 1977, had left.
He was not due to retire until 2014.
Deputy governor Gordon Morrice has taken over at the jail in Duffy Drive, Crown, until a replacement is appointed.
No-one else has departed the prison in connection with the affair and no formal complaints have been lodged against Mr MacVicar. There is no suggestion of any criminal activity.
A source close to the prison refused to comment on the details of the governor’s resignation but emphasised that the prison service expected the highest standards of behaviour from staff at all times.
Mr MacVicar was previously involved in the redevelopment of Glenochil prison, in Clackmannanshire, and had experience as a governor in Shotts Unit — a subsection of the main Shotts prison in Lanarkshire designed specifically for housing difficult and disruptive prisoners.
Porterfield — highlighted by the chief inspector of prisons as overcrowded and lacking decent living conditions — houses around 120 prisoners, although it was designed to accommodate just 104.
It is expected the post will be advertised next month. "It is a plum role," said a prison service spokesman.
