[Ammi]

A British woman prison officer was found naked in bed with a convict after helping him abscond from jail, a court heard. He was dubbed one of the most feared men in Scotland.

While hunting the escaped convict, James Holland, police burst into officer Christine Robertson's flat and found the couple in bed together, after she had allegedly helped the notorious thug flee prison, the Daily Mail reported.

The 45-year-old Robertson was found in compromising position after previously "appointing herself" as Holland's "personal officer", it is alleged.

She had aided and abetted career criminal Holland in helping him abscond from Castle Huntly open jail in Perthshire, a jury at Dundee Sheriff Court heard.

Holland, who had spent the last 20 years in jail for various crimes, absonded prison last March while serving an eight-year term for assault and robbery.

Though he was described as "one of the most feared and dangerous men in Scotland', he had been kept in open prison conditions before absconding last year.