A federal grand jury has indicted 15 defendants on federal racketeering and drug conspiracy charges at Jessup Correctional Institution, federal prosecutors said.
The defendants include former correctional officers, inmates, and outside “facilitators," according to the U. S. Department of Justice.
Part of the indictment says that from at least 2017 until now, correctional officers, inmates and the outside facilitators conspired to smuggle contraband into Jessup, including narcotics, alcohol, tobacco, and cell phones to enrich themselves and protect and grow their operation.
According to the indictment, the correctional officers accepted or agreed to accept payments from facilitators and/or inmates or engaged in sexual activity with inmates as consideration for smuggling items into Jessup.
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Despite having to pass through security screening, the indictment says the correctional officers hid contraband on their persons. Once they smuggled the items into the prison, they allegedly delivered it to inmates in the kitchens and in bathrooms or closets near where inmates and staff interacted, among other locations, the indictment said.
If convicted, the defendants face a maximum of 20 years for the racketeering conspiracy charge and 20 years in prison for the drug trafficking conspiracy.
