Seven men at Federal Correctional Institute Seagoville have been charged with possessing contraband behind bars, including pictures of child pornography that were printed out.
Other prohibited items included multiple different drugs and phones.
Each inmate is facing separate charges, including:
- Isaac Martinez: possessing contraband in prison (methamphetamine).
- Nicholas Evans: possessing contraband in prison (buprenorphine, an opioid prescription drug) and possession with intent to distribute a controlled substance.
- Hugo Castaneda: two counts of possession of a prohibited object (methamphetamine) and one count of possession with intent to contribute a controlled substance.
- Abdullah El Hage: possession of a prohibited object (methamphetamine).
- Matthew Rodriguez: possession of a prohibited object (methamphetamine) and possessing contraband in prison (phone).
- Deaunte Lakeith Johunkin: possession of contraband (K2, commonly known as synthetic marijuana) in prison and attempted possession with intent to distribute a controlled substance.
- Richard King: possession of child pornography (printed, black and white, sexually explicit photos of prepubescent girls).
If convicted, the inmates could face additional jail time on top of the sentences they are currently serving.
“The Northern District of Texas will not tolerate contraband inside federal prisons, period,” said U.S. Attorney Leigha Simonton in a press release. “Inmates who handle drugs, phones, or child sexual abuse material risk having significant time tacked onto their sentences. The safety of prison guards, other inmates, and even those outside prison walls depends on our enforcement of these rules.”
“Contraband largely serves to facilitate criminal acts in prison and poses real and potential danger to Federal Correctional Institute Seagoville personnel, other prisoners and to the community at large,” said FBI Dallas Acting Special Agent in Charge James Godley. “We will continue to work with our federal partners to investigate contraband encounters.”
Federal Correctional Institute Seagoville is a low-security prison southeast of Dallas that holds just under 1,800 male offenders.
Earlier this year, two men at a federal prison in Fort Worth attempted to smuggle in cell phones and marijuana via a mesh bag.
Joseph Mora and Reza Ayari both pleaded guilty to attempt to provide contraband to a prisoner and were sentenced to 58 and 50 months, per the U.S. Attorney’s Office Northern District.
Last year, a Texas lawyer faced jail time after smuggling drug-laced papers into a jail, as previously reported by The Dallas Express. The attorney would visit the jail under the guise of performing legal duties, then smuggle in sheets of paper that had been coated with ecstasy and synthetic marijuana.