Sheriff Ed Gonzalez announced on Wednesday afternoon that a second person has been arrested in connection with smuggling illegal drugs into Harris County Jail.
In October, investigators discovered evidence indicating that a detention officer, Robert Robertson, may have been selling drugs to inmates. A dedicated team subsequently confirmed that Robertson delivered marijuana and K2 synthetic marijuana to individuals within the jail. The investigation suggests he may have also transported other illegal narcotics.
On Wednesday morning, at the beginning of his duty shift at the jail, 24-year-old detention officer Robertson was apprehended. Prosecutor Kimberly Smith stated that Robertson was booked on charges of engaging in organized criminal activity, coupled with a second underlying felony related to delivering a prohibited substance into a correctional facility.
Expressing her disbelief, Smith remarked that there were no words for someone in whom trust had been placed to be involved in this type of criminal activity. Gonzalez announced that Robertson had been relieved of duty. He had been working for six years in the Harris County Jail.
Gonzalez asserted that no one, particularly their own teammates, would receive leniency concerning actions that put the lives of those in their jail at risk.
As part of a broader investigation addressing a series of inmate overdoses, some of which proved fatal this year, the arrest occurred over a week after attorney Ronald Lewis faced charges of two counts of prohibited substances in a correctional facility. The 77-year-old, captured on jail surveillance using a cane, is accused of supplying inmates with papers laced with drugs since July.
Lewis was arrested during a jail visit. He was found in possession of 11 sheets of paper allegedly soaked in drugs, according to Lt. J. Wheeler from the Harris County Sheriff’s Office Criminal Investigations and Security Division. Wheeler noted that the papers would undergo testing for confirmation.
The arrest follows information from jail sources that Lewis had been providing inmates with papers soaked in K2, PCP, and “Spice” from July to November. Another defense attorney was implicated in a search warrant last week for allegedly distributing drugged papers to a client, though no charges have been filed.
Additionally, on November 20, Michael Barnett, an inmate, was accused of fentanyl murder by delivery. He’s been charged with selling fentanyl within the jail. Court records stated that Christian Rayo, a fellow prisoner, died after snorting it.
Prosecutor Kimberly Smith mentioned that there could be additional charges, although she did not confirm if any of the arrests or cases were connected. Robertson is expected to appear in court on Thursday morning, where a judge will set bond.
Source: https://abc13.com/harris-county-jail-drug-arrest-death-investigation/14118905/