Department of Corrections Commissioner Anthony Torres, right, Department of Public Safety Commissioner Anthony Macaranas, center, and DPS-Special Operations Group Commander Joe Saures conduct a press conference Wednesday afternoon.
THE Departments of Corrections and Public Safety are seeking the public’s assistance in identifying and apprehending a man who threw a contraband into the correctional facility.
At a press conference Wednesday afternoon, Corrections Commissioner Anthony Torres said:
“Approximately 9:39 a.m., a male individual was seen in the jungle, southside of the correctional facility, throwing an object over DOC fence into the DOC basketball court while inmates were in recreational [time].”
The suspect was described as someone who is “5’ to 5’8” tall, weighing about 180 lbs. to 200 lbs., medium-built, tan skinned with short wavy hair.” He was wearing a blue or turquoise shirt, a light brown camouflage jacket, dark-colored shorts and slippers.
DPS and Corrections officers conducted a search for the suspect but did not find him.
Torres declined to say what was thrown in by the suspect.
“We retrieve the contraband — just know it is a contraband, whether its major or minor, we have an [anti- contraband law] in effect, so it is against the law to do any of that. I’m not going to go into the details or the specifics of it,” Torres said.
Asked whether it is for a particular inmate, Torres said, “We are still investigating that. My staff immediately called for a lockdown. They took the inmates who were in the recreation yard and conducted a full strip search and did a mass interview. I commend my staff for that.”
He added, “In the past, to my knowledge before I got here…things like this had happened, but there was no remedy, it was only handled administratively. Before the [anti-contraband law], DPS couldn’t look into it in investigating it. But with the [law] now, DPS is armed with something to build a case against someone.”
“We are actually looking into former inmates’ photos who were here to try to get a positive ID so we’re looking into that as well because there could be some collusion with former inmates and [current inmates] who wanted to come and drop off some contraband for their fellow brothers who are playing basketball, so we’re looking at all angles,” Torres said.
“For anybody thinking to do this — if you get caught, you’re going to end up being an inmate yourself,” he said.
Torres noted that the attempt to smuggle the contraband could have been planned based on the regular schedule of inmates for recreation and fresh air.
“This is why cell phones are prohibited in the secured areas,” he added.
“If you have any information regarding the male individual, please call DPS, DOC or Crime Stoppers,” Torres said.
For his part, DPS Commissioner Anthony Macaranas said, “With this case, we handle the investigative part, in collaboration with DOC personnel. Our part is to take the complaint, and then investigate the complaint, and when the case has been fully investigated, we forward it to the Office of the Attorney General for prosecution.”
According to Torres, a Corrections officer and a Corrections lieutenant have been caught bringing contraband for inmates.
“Both are no longer working here,” Torres said. He did not identify them.
Under the new anti-contraband law, “major contraband” means “any firearm, ammunition, explosives or combustibles, and any plans or materials that could be used in the making or manufacturing of such weapons, explosives, or devices; any dangerous device or dangerous weapon; anything that is designed or intended to be used to facilitate escape from a correctional facility or an outside assignment; marijuana or a controlled substance in schedule I, II, III, or IV, as defined in 6 CMC Chapter 1 (Commonwealth Controlled Substances Act); and any telecommunications device, including any electronic device or apparatus associated with a device, that can enable communication with a person outside of a correctional facility.”
A major contraband also includes, “without limitation, a telephone, a cellular telephone, a personal digital assistant, a transmitting radio, watch or a computer that is connected to a computer or cellular network or is capable of connecting to a computer or cellular network through the use of wireless or wired technology or is otherwise capable of communicating with a person or device outside of a correctional facility.”
As for “minor contraband,” it means “an alcoholic beverage or any controlled substance in schedule V, as defined in 6 CMC Chapter 1 (Commonwealth Controlled Substances Act), any paraphernalia used or intended for use in ingesting or consuming a controlled substance; or any other drugs not included in schedules I through V, except on the prescription of a licensed practitioner; any United States or foreign currency; any peripheral device that stores data digitally, mechanically, optically, or using flash memory; and any other object listed in the Department of Corrections rules and regulations as contraband and not defined as major contraband by this section.”
The law, P.L. 23-7, states that “a conviction for the promotion of major contraband shall be punishable by a term of imprisonment of not more than four years, a fine of not more than $1,500, or both,” while a conviction for the promotion of minor contraband “shall be punishable by a term of imprisonment of not more than one year, a fine of not more than $1,000, or both.”
