No evidence linking 2nd prison officer to drug bust

Ganja found at officers’ quarters

One of the two prison officers attached to the Lusignan penitentiary, East Coast Demerara (ECD) who were initially arrested following the discovery of ganja was released from Police custody.
This was confirmed in a press release on Saturday which stated that based on investigations, there was no evidence linking that warden to the drug, but the other officer – Quincy Jemmott, was arraigned for the crime. The illegal substance was unearthed in a cupboard at the Prison Officers’ Quarters at Lusignan.
The release added that Home Affairs Minister Robeson Benn was briefed on the situation by Director of Prisons, Gladwin Samuels. The Ministry has since reiterated its zero-tolerance stance for rogue members of law enforcement agencies and has pledged to “continue to support every effort to root out those elements from the system”.

It was reported that 894 grams of marijuana was found hidden in a cupboard under a sink wrapped in two large transparent zip lock bags. This had led to the arrest of the two officers, but on November 16, 34-year-old Jemmott, of Schoonord, West Bank Demerara (WBD), was arraigned for possession of narcotics for the purpose of trafficking when he appeared at the Vigilance Magistrate’s Court.
He pleaded not guilty to the charge and was granted bail in the sum of $150,000. He is set to return to court on March 21, 2021.
Minister Benn had recently disclosed that assisting inmates to smuggle contraband and other corrupted practices at the penitentiaries have resulted in the dismissal of several prison officers.
This is after he was questioned about the frequent jailbreaks across the penitentiaries – the latest of which was the escape of two murder accused from the Lusignan Prison’s Holding Bay.
Benn shared his concerns over the level of corruption among prison officers and inmates, which he said has resulted in frequent checks. In most cases, the prison wardens are enabling prisoners to smuggle contraband into the prisons.
“The issues of people escaping from the prisons has to do with poor administrative issues at the prison. There is corruption at the level of the prison officers. We have been firing prison officers for smuggling ganja, rum, vodka, whiskey, cigarette. There are issues of them making knives there, and so searches have to be conducted,” he was quoted as saying.
During previous checks at the penitentiaries, improvised weapons, cellphones, alcohol, and other illegal items were found and seized. In July, the confiscation of contraband led an inmate to set fire to the Lusignan Prison – burning the entire structure to the ground.