Glamorous prosecutor Vanessa O'Bryan is accused of having intimate relationships with several inmates

By SARAH BROOKES - SENIOR REPORTER, AUSTRALIA Published: 03:28, 12 April 2026 | Updated: 03:28, 12 April 2026 A prosecutor is accused of having sexual relationships with prison inmates and accessing hundreds of confidential files in alleged breaches.   Taxpayer-funded solicitor Vanessa O'Bryan, 32, was granted bail after spending months on remand following her arrest in November 2025, The Sunday Telegraph reported. After months of suppression, it can now be revealed while employed with the NSW Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP), O'Bryan allegedly engaged in a relationship with convicted gangland killer Joshua Baines who she had previously represented as a criminal defence lawyer as well as several other inmates.   Baines is serving 27 years over his role in the murder of Pasquale Barbaro, a crime figure killed in Earlwood, in Sydney's inner west, in 2016. A police document alleges O'Bryan improperly accessed hundreds of confidential files for no legitimate legal purpose.  'The accused is a DPP solicitor and former defence solicitor who has had access to high-level criminals on a professional and personal level,' it alleges. 'The extent of the impact of the information that she has provided to these persons is not known and (is) potentially extremely damaging to other court matters and/or the safety of individuals.'  A police prosecutor told the court last year that O'Bryan had no legitimate reason to contact prison inmates as a DPP solicitor. Solicitor Vanessa O'Bryan (pictured) is alleged to have had intimate relationships with prisoners including a gangland murderer jailed for 27 years 'Between May 8, 2023 and January 16, 2025 there were (hundreds of) conversations with Joshua Baines for the purpose of carrying out intimate sexual relations,' the police prosecutor said. 'She's not only willing to have sexual relationships with inmates, but also compromise police investigations as a result of those relationships. 'Police don't know what the actual impact of her accessing the records is … because they are still investigating.' O'Bryan allegedly had an intimate relationship with another inmate Terry Sampson. She is accused of effectively dobbing herself into police after she reported receiving abusive texts from Sampson's girlfriend at the time Sharna Cain. 'I swear you and Terry aren't getting away with this hahaha big lawyer I'm coming for you,' Cain wrote.  Cain pleaded guilty and was handed a 12-month community correction order for intimidation. The police document alleges during a three-way call between O'Bryan, Cain and Sampson, O'Bryan made comments which indicate she was having a sexualised relationship with Sampson. Joshua Baines (pictured) was sentenced to jail over his role in the murder of wannabe mafia boss Pasquale Barbaro 'O'Bryan sent Cain, via message, a selfie image of Sampson shirtless with the caption 'I love you so much Vanessa' in order to prove to Cain that she was in a relationship with Sampson,' the police document read. The DPP launched a probe after Cain reported O'Bryan. O'Bryan allegedly accessed 1,439 pages relating to 284 other criminal matters she had no affiliation with.  O’Bryan was initially charged with misconduct in public office, illegal access to restricted data and hindering evidence, and released on police bail. She was later remanded after being hit with more serious allegations of benefiting from a criminal group and concealing crime proceeds, but has since secured bail. In the NSW Supreme Court on Friday, Justice Sarah McNaughton lifted the suppression orders. 'There is a higher public interest in open justice where a solicitor has been charged with serious criminal offences,' she said. Sorry we are not currently accepting comments on this article.