Fulton County Jail contraband ring busted: 6 arrested, including detention officer
ATLANTA - A Fulton County Jail detention officer is one of six people arrested after a major contraband network was busted. Evidence seized in the bust includes drones, stolen weapons, marijuana, and almost $5,000 in cash.
Fulton County Sheriff Patrick Labat says four of those arrested were also vendors and contractors at the jail. They are people who are hired to provide food service to the jail, but in this case, the sheriff says they were on the take.
"The most important thing is that we have disrupted this network, and this level of contraband is no longer coming into our facility," Sheriff Labat commented.
Fulton County Jail smuggling operation busted
The sheriff says this major smuggling operation began crumbling when one of his employees noticed Newport cigarettes hidden under sandwiches in a food tray delivered on Dec. 22, 2023.
The sheriff launched a major investigation that led to the six people being charged in a clandestine contraband operation with inside ties.
"It is huge. It's one thing to find contraband that is fashioned from the building itself. It's another thing to find contraband that has been brought in or gotten in some shape, form or fashion," the sheriff said.
Fulton County Jail smuggling operation busted
Fulton County Jail's illegal underground smuggling ring has been busted up and a half-dozen people have been arrested including a detention officer and several contractors and vendors. An exclusive look at the contraband being brought into the secured facility.
Labat says food vendors Tiffany Anderson and Richard Smith were arrested on January 4. Anderson’s sister, Sequoyah Anderson-Roberts, also worked as a food vendor, and was arrested the following day.
It was just four days later that an internal probe uncovered vendor Nicole Sheats' arrest.
The final nail in the coffin came Friday morning when SWAT officers swarmed the house of one of their own, Tiffany Davis, who worked as a detention officer. The sheriff says Davis was found with drugs, almost $5,000 in cash, a drone, and weapons inside her home. Investigators also were able to trace her to a romantic interest back to the jail. Deputies arrested Davis' boyfriend, former inmate Vanlen Preston. He was found hiding in the attic.
Fulton County Jail contraband operation: How did it work?
The sheriff told FOX 5’s Aungelique Proctor in an exclusive interview on Friday that he believes all six people were working together to smuggle the contraband into the Fulton County Jail.
"Systematically, the way that the contraband entered the Fulton County Jail was through t. It came through the contractor's vehicles and ultimately dispersed through there," Labat confirmed.
The sheriff says this investigation is not over and more charges are likely as his investigative team continues to reveal corruption, no matter where it is hiding.
"This apparently was a network. So, we are working with the DA, working with her team to determine both gang charges. You look at things found in her home, in terms of stolen weapons, marijuana, those kinds of things, and how large the network even goes from there," the sheriff concluded.
Sheriff Labat says there will be security changes and upgrades going forward to prevent networks like this from thriving here.