A domestic abuser was able to phone up his victim from the Isle of Man prison - in a case that comes weeks after concerns were raised about similar failures at the site.

Geoffrey Ronald Barber, 39, had admitted breaching a Domestic Abuse Protection Notice (DAPN) by contacting the woman he was banned from seeing three times.

A spokesperson for the Department of Home Affairs said the correct procedures had been followed in this instance.

Prosecuting advocate Sara-Jayne Dodge told the court that a DAPN was issued on February 24, banning Barber from contacting the woman.

On March 7, at 2.10am, police attended Barber’s address for an unrelated matter but found the woman present.

He was arrested and remanded in custody, but on March 8 he made three phone calls to the woman from prison.

Magistrates were critical of the situation, telling Barber: ‘You absolutely should not have been able to contact your alleged victim from the prison.

‘You’ve shown a total disregard of the notices.’

On April 14, Barber was placed on probation for 12 months and made subject to a Domestic Abuse Protection Order (DAPO).

However, just two days later, he breached the order again.

On April 16, police attended the woman’s address and found Barber at the property, sitting on a sofa.

When officers entered, he was then discovered hiding in a wardrobe.

At a subsequent hearing, magistrates refused a bail application made by defence advocate Jane Gray, and Barber was remanded in custody ahead of sentencing.

He is due to be sentenced on June 4 following an updated probation report.

During the earlier hearing, defence advocate Lawrie Gelling had asked for credit for Barber’s guilty pleas.

She said he had initially been in denial about the relationship but had now accepted it was over and did not want further contact.

Ms Gelling said he had signed up for counselling to address his mental health and future relationships, adding that he accepted he needed help and wanted to apologise to the victim and her family.

The case follows a separate incident involving domestic abuser Cesar Maia, which prompted a review of the prison’s phone systems.

Maia, 42, made around 500 calls to his victim from Jurby Prison while on remand, leading Deemster Graeme Cook to halt sentencing and raise concerns about how the contact had been allowed.

The calls were made before Maia admitted the offence, and the court was told transcripts showed no direct threats, although the prosecution suggested there were elements of coercion or manipulation in the calls.

Deemster Cook previously said such calls ‘should not have been made’ and described the issue as an internal matter for the prison.

The subsequent review by the Department of Home Affairs found there had been a ‘breakdown in the process’ which enabled the calls to take place.

A government spokesperson said the use of prisoner phones is closely monitored and that, under normal circumstances, a prisoner would not be able to contact their victim, particularly in domestic abuse cases.

In Barber’s case, they said known victims, addresses and telephone numbers are recorded and restricted in relation to the prisoner, with further safeguards applied if additional contact details are identified.

The spokesperson added: ‘The process was followed in this instance.’