STANLEY BRYAN, a correctional officer at the Tower Street Adult Correctional Centre in Kingston, was arrested last Saturday for attempting to smuggle contraband into the maximum-security prison.
This brings to seven, the number of correctional officers who have been caught smuggling illegal items into prisons since the start of the year. Three civilians have also been held.
Commissioner of Corrections, Major Richard Reese told The Gleaner yesterday that at about 11:00 p.m., a search operation was conducted and Mr. Bryan refused to have an item in his bag searched. Mr. Bryan, he said, pulled a knife at the search officer who was then forced to release the bag.
Major Reese said that Mr. Bryan then ran into a bathroom, where search officers had to break down the door to apprehend him. He said a knife and a quantity of ganja, which Mr. Bryan attempted to flush, were found in the toilet.
Major Reese said this is the second incident in which a correctional officer attacked an officer after being searched.
Oneil Thompson was held at the St. Catherine Adult Correctional Institution in February, after a quantity of ganja was found on his person. While being searched, he attacked one of the correctional officers with a knife and had to be restrained.
Last year, four civilians and six correctional officers were held while attempting to traffic illegal contraband in the prisons. Major Reese attributes the arrests to the new search operation, which was implemented recently.
