A murderer sparked a raid by prison officers because so many mobile phone calls were being made from within his cell.

Detectors within maximum security Perth Prison were picking up "regular activity" from the cell being occupied by killer Matthew Pope.

When the officers carried out the search another inmate fled with a mobile phone and flushed it down a nearby toilet.

Pope admitted having the phone's charger and he was given a six-month concurrent prison sentence at Perth Sheriff Court.

The killer, who will not be freed until at least 2032, admitted having a prohibited item within Perth Prison on August 7 last year.

The 25-year-old murdered Michael Given, 29, at a flat in Dundee and was jailed for life in 2014 with a minimum period of 17 and a half years.