Corrupt Correctional Officer Caught Red-Handed
Abingdon, VA – In a shocking case of public corruption, a former correctional officer at Southwest Virginia Regional Jail in Abingdon, Virginia, has been sentenced for his role in smuggling contraband into the facility.
Justin Andrew Brown, 23, of Lebanon, Virginia, was sentenced to six months in prison and six months house arrest, followed by three years of supervised release, for his crimes. He was also ordered to forfeit $6,500.
Brown previously pleaded guilty to one count of accepting a bribe as a public official and one count of conspiring to accept a bribe as a public official. His accomplice, Robert Lewis Jones, 25, also pleaded guilty to one count of conspiring to accept a bribe as a public official and is set to be sentenced on November 29, 2017.
According to court documents, Brown was approached by an inmate in the summer of 2015 with a proposal to smuggle contraband into the jail in exchange for $10,000. Brown agreed to the proposal and began working with the inmate to arrange the smuggling of controlled substances, tobacco, and nude pictures into the jail.
Law enforcement agents became aware of Brown’s plan in March 2016 and set up a sting operation to catch him in the act. On March 22, 2016, Brown and Jones met with a cooperating witness at a restaurant in Abingdon, where they took possession of the contraband items and a quantity of United States currency. Brown was then arrested, along with Jones, shortly thereafter.
The investigation was conducted by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives, Abingdon Police Department, and the Washington County Sheriff’s Department. Assistant United States Attorney Zachary T. Lee prosecuted the case for the United States.
Key Facts
- State: Virginia
- Category: Public Corruption
- Source: DOJ Press Release â†â€â€
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