SHAUGHNA Phillips had her dream career as an influencer, she was about to welcome her first child and it looked like she had finally found her happy ending – until she got a phone call no one ever wants to receive.
Just two months before The Love Island star gave birth – and days after they returned from a ‘babymoon’ in LA – her boyfriend, Billy Webb, was arrested for drug dealing.
Shaughna Phillips is having her second baby with boyfriend Billy Webb, pictured here just days before he was arrested for drug dealing[/caption]
Billy Webb is currently serving a nine year sentence after being caught dealing cocaine, ecstasy and ketamine[/caption]
Shaughna showed off her new baby bump on TV this week[/caption]
In that moment, Shaughna’s world came crashing down as she discovered her partner’s double life for the first time – after being left completely in the dark for years.
Fast forward two years and Shaughna, 31, is pregnant with her second baby and cocaine dealer Billy is the father – despite currently serving a nine year jail term for serious drug offences.
The Sun can reveal that Shaughna and Billy have been enjoying family days out for the past seven months while Billy has been on day release from an open prison.
An insider said: “Billy has been in a Category D prison, which means he has been able to spend a fair bit of time with Shaughna.
“He even managed to be home over Christmas, which meant a lot to her and, of course, Lucia. He hasn’t been released as many people thought, but he has a lot of privileges.”
Category D prisons – also known as open prisons – have minimal security and “low risk” inmates are allowed to leave the site to work, “resettle” or attend education during the day.
Inmates can be moved from high security jails to open prisons within weeks of sentencing if they have shown good behaviour and are trusted not to escape, re-offend of cause trouble.
Billy was jailed after being caught in a Met Police drugs raid in January 2024. It came just days after the couple were pictured at Heathrow Airport after returning home after a ‘babymoon’ holiday in Los Angeles.
Cops discovered cocaine, ecstasy and ketamine worth at least £360,000 in the operation on Kentish Town Road in north west London near his home.
Webb was later jailed for nine years at Southwark Crown Court for seven drug offences including dealing.
The news hit Shaughna like a ton of bricks, saying she had no idea what was going on and initially thought he had been arrested for speeding.
Fans initially assumed she had ended their relationship, but Shaughna – who appeared on Love Island in 2020 – made the incredibly tough decision to keep him in her life.
Just over two months after his arrest she had her daughter Lucia and allowed Billy, then on remand, to be part of their lives.
In fact, when Billy was jailed in November 2023 she wrote a letter to the judge on behalf of Lucia, saying she would ‘walk on coals’ for her little one.
She later said: “’There was absolutely no discussion of leniency. Billy pled guilty to something that he’d done, and there was no denying that fact that’s done.”
Shaughna is already mum to a daughter Lucia with her partner Billy[/caption]
Shaughna shared her pregnancy news over the weekend[/caption]
And as Billy started his sentence, Shaughna started visiting him with their little girl.
An insider revealed: “Everyone might have been judging her, but Shaughna was still very much in love with Billy and she always saw herself as his girlfriend, even when he was locked up.”
The distraught star begged fans “not to judge”, admitting it was the “most gut-wrenching position” to be in.
She said: “I feel like unless you’ve been in this position, you can’t really have an opinion on it.
“Because before I was in this position, before I had a baby, if you had asked me would I ever, ever take my child into a prison, the answer would be absolutely not. Anyone that does that is crazy.
“And then, lo and behold, I’m now in this position.”
The insider added: “From Shaughna’s point of view, him being locked up was the biggest punishment he could get and she really thinks he has learnt his lesson.”
It seems Shaughna won’t have to worry about visits for much longer as insiders have revealed Billy is due for release later this year after showing exemplary behaviour.
Shaughna first met Billy just a month before she was approached to do Love Island – and she has said it was a “crazy butterfly effect” that led to them being together.
She explained: “I had tickets to see Drake with my ex, we broke up, so I took my friend instead and she was friends with Billy.
“She posted this pic of me on her story and he replied ‘who’s your mate’ and the rest is history. It also turns out he sent that message on 4/4/19 and i have lucia on 4/4/23.”
The star shed six stone after giving birth the first time[/caption]
Shaughna surprised fans when she announced her pregnancy[/caption]
Her Love Island journey wasn’t plain sailing – she entered on day one and became an instant fan favourite.
She instantly connected with Callum Jones, but after 26 days, the romance came to an abrupt end after Callum opted to couple up with Molly Smith instead after meeting in one of the most infamous Casa Amor’s of all time.
After 33 days, Shaughna was dumped from the villa, but it seems Billy had been waiting in the wings the whole time, and she later joked: “I was worth the wait.”
Shaughna – who shed six stone after Lucia – shocked fans when she shared her baby news over the weekend.
She told MirrorOnline: “We’re so happy to announce we are adding to our little family.
“Lucia is going to be the best big sister and is really excited to have a new baby brother or sister arrive later this year.”
Shaughna rose to fame on Love Island in 2020[/caption]
The star was a huge hit on the show thanks to her infectious personality[/caption]
Shaughna has always been determined to give her daughter the childhood she had.
She was incredibly close to her own dad Eddie, who tragically died from pancreatic cancer in December 2016 after being diagnosed 13 months earlier.
In a touching post for him last year, she wrote: “I wish you met Lucia, she would have you wrapped round her little finger. But I’m sure she was handpicked for me by you, because she has healed parts of my heart I thought were broken forever…”
And because of her incredibly tight bond with her own dad, Shaughna will make sure Lucia has the same – no matter what.
“The thing is, we’re always going to be co-parents,” she said of Billy.
“I know that me and my dad had the best relationship ever, and to me, my dad is the best person in the world.
“I don’t want Lucia to think differently of her father. I would never, ever stop him from seeing her, ever.”
And with Billy’s release date getting closer every day, Shaughna is still planning for her happy family.
What is an open prison?
An open prison – also known as a category D jail – refers to any institution in which the prisoners are trusted to complete their sentences with minimal supervision and perimeter security.
Unlike high security units, prisoners in an open jail are not locked up in their cells for the majority of their day.
They are also permitted to take up employment while serving their sentence.
The general idea of open prisons is to rehabilitate prisoners rather than to punish them.
