Ricky Smith-Towns, 25, saw two prisoners attack a correctional officer on August 15 last year and closed a cell door, trapping the officer inside.

The inmates then tied the guard’s hands behind his back with a ripped bed sheet and demanded cigarettes, a Supreme Court document shows.

The situation – which later involved a second guard – was resolved after 40 minutes, with the help of a police tactical response group.

Smith-Towns was charged with assault for his part in the crime.

In his sentencing report, Justice Robert Pearce said Smith-Towns was pressured into closing the cell door by another inmate.

Justice Pearce said Smith-Towns’ role in the ordeal was not as serious as the role played by the two primary offenders, but his actions ultimately prevented authorities from rescuing the victim sooner.

“It made no difference to the outcome except by adding somewhat to the trauma to which the officer was exposed,” Justice Peace said.

The initial officer involved has since left the prison service, although the attack was not the only thing that contributed to his decision, the document states.

Smith-Towns spent two months in solitary confinement in his cell afterwards and was only allowed one hour of exercise each day.

The 25-year-old was sentenced to two months’ jail, backdated to July 2, 2015.

Both primary offenders involved have been sentenced.

One was sentenced to nine months imprisonment.

The other was sentenced to six months imprisonment, three months of which was suspended for three years.