Woman gets engaged to US prison inmate she's never met

This 28-year-old woman is engaged to a prison inmate who she's never met - and he won't be released until 2032.

Social work graduate Kelly Jacobs has been writing to James 'Wyatt' Dentel in his cell in Oregon where he is serving 20 years for shooting four men - since 2019.

After many letters, emails and instant message conversations their pen pal relationship developed into a romance.

Wyatt, 32, got several tattoos of Kelly - who lives 5,000 miles away in the Netherlands - and she had the letter 'W' inked on her ring finger.

He proposed via video call and they plan to marry inside his prison in October of this year - over a decade before his release date.

"He proposed with a prison-made ring, but then he had someone in the free world order a ring at a jeweller for me," said Kelly, who is hoping to work in psychiatry now she has graduated.

"For the wedding I won't wear a traditional, fancy dress, because people don't do that for prison weddings.

"I will probably just wear a simple white dress or white trousers or a white skirt and top."

Remarkably Kelly's parents have given their blessing to the relationship and the couple plan to live together and have children when Wyatt is released.

He is serving a 20 year sentence at the Snake River Correctional Institution in Oregon for assault, and unlawful use of a firearm during a bar brawl in 2012.

Kelly explained: "He was with a girlfriend, they were at a bar and they got attacked by five strangers, he tried to protect himself and his girlfriend, he pulled a gun and shot four of them, but none of them died."

The couple have never been in the same room, and even after they are married they will not be able to have conjugal visits, because that is not permitted in the state of Oregon.

"Of course it is difficult," said Kelly. "He is worried that I won't pick up the phone eventually, or that I won't wait for him.

"He asks me how I feel about not having sex for such a long time, he worries how I would react if someone else flirts with me.

"But he says he's quite confident that I will wait, because I'm not the kind of person who goes to parties or leads a crazy life.

"If I found out that he was writing to other women that would end things for me. For me, creating a bond with someone else is also cheating.

"I sometimes wonder if there won't be physical chemistry when we meet in person for the first time, but I'm not worried too much.

"When Covid is over I plan to move closer to his prison so that I can visit him as much as possible.

"I had just bought my first ticket to visit him before the pandemic struck, but I had to cancel it because of the travel restrictions."