Dirk Antonious Engram, Jr., Smuggling Contraband, Georgia 2015

Atlanta, Georgia - In a shocking case of corruption, a former U.S. Penitentiary Guard has been sentenced to federal prison for taking bribes to smuggle contraband into the federal prison in Atlanta. Dirk Antonious Engram, Jr., 27, of Atlanta, was sentenced to two years, four months in prison to be followed by three years of supervised release.

According to Acting U.S. Attorney John Horn, the defendant, Engram, began working as a corrections officer at U.S. Penitentiary-Atlanta, a medium-security prison with approximately 2,000 male inmates, in November 2013. In 2014, Engram began smuggling contraband into the prison for inmates who befriended him, charging $500 each time that he smuggled cigarettes, marijuana, or other contraband into the prison.

He was arrested on September 11, 2014, by agents with the FBI after he accepted a bribe to smuggle what he believed was heroin into the penitentiary. Engram pleaded guilty to the charges on March 24, 2015.

The FBI investigated the case, and Assistant United States Attorney William G. Traynor prosecuted the case. The sentencing marks the end of Engram's career as a federal corrections officer and the beginning of his time as a federal inmate.

Corrupt corrections officers compromise prison safety while they profit from the underground economy that unfortunately exists in prison, said Acting U.S. Attorney John Horn. Prison is supposed to be a place where the controls are strong enough that additional crime is impossible, but this breaks down instantly when the officers themselves participate in the corruption.

The FBI will continue to vigorously investigate all allegations of corruption within this or other correctional facilities as part of the overall effort to ensure safety and order for both inmates and staff at these facilities, said J. Britt Johnson, Special Agent in Charge, FBI Atlanta Field Office.

The exact criminal charges against Engram include taking bribes to smuggle contraband into the federal prison. The dollar amount involved in the case was $500 per incident of smuggling.

For further information, contact the U.S. Attorney's Public Affairs Office at USAGAN.PressEmails@usdoj.gov or (404) 581-6016. The Internet address for the home page for the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Northern District of Georgia Atlanta Division is http://www.justice.gov/usao-ndga.

Source: https://www.justice.gov/usao-ndga/pr/former-us-penitentiary-guard-sentenced-smuggling-contraband-federal-prison-atlanta