Pubdate: Fri, 17 Oct 2003 Source: Citizens' Voice, The (Wilkes-Barre, PA) Copyright: 2003 The Citizens' Voice Contact: http://www.citizensvoice.com/ Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/1334 Author: Fred Ney 3 CORRECTIONS OFFICERS, 2 INMATES FACE DRUG CHARGES An undercover drug probe at the Luzerne County Correctional Facility, under way since last July, has produced the arrests of three prison guards and two inmates. Luzerne County District Attorney David Lupas Thursday said the prison drug investigation has nothing to do with last week's prison break involving Hugo Selenski and Scott Bolton. "It's a separate matter," Lupas stated. The DA commended Warden Gene Fischi for helping to trigger the investigation by coming to him with information last July. At about the same time, state police investigators were gathering their own information relative to suspected illegal drug activity inside the prison. Taken into custody Thursday were correctional officers Shawn P. Cunningham, 34, of Swoyersville; Peter J. Achey, 45, of Wilkes-Barre and Gordon E. Mason, 38, of Mountain Top. Inmates arrested were Michael Ceccarelli, 28, West Pittston, and Tammi Ann English, 25, of Dallas. Cuningham and Achey were charged with bringing controlled substance contraband into the prison, bribery in official and political matters, unlawful delivery of a controlled substance and unlawful possession of a controlled substance. Mason was charged with bringing controlled substance contraband into prison, bribery in official and political matters, unlawful delivery of a controlled substance, unlawful possession of a controlled substance and attempting to obtain altered, forged or counterfeit documents or plates. Ceccarelli was charged with unlawful possession of a controlled substance and unlawful delivery and conspiracy. English was charged with being in possession of controlled substance contraband, simple assault and attempted escape. All five were arraigned at the Luzerne County Correctional Facility before District Justice Donald Whittaker of Nanticoke. All five were sent to prison. The three guards had bail set at $100,000 straight cash. They were imprisoned at an undisclosed location, so they would not be placed in the general prison population where they worked. Ceccarelli's bail was set at $15,000 while English's bail was set at $5,000. Both were returned to the county prison. Ceccarelli became unruly during his arraignment and had to be restrained. Hearings for all five will be held Wednesday, Oct. 22, at 1:30 p.m. before District Justice Martin Kane of Wilkes-Barre. Luzerne County Chief County Det. Michael Dessoye said the guards arrested were not functioning "as a ring." "They were independent contractors. One didn't know what the other was doing," he said. Lupas said the guards were smuggling narcotics into the prison to sell to inmates. Undercover agents of the Pennsylvania State Police Organized Crime Unit of the Bureau of Criminal Investigation, working with confidential informants, gained the trust of the three prison guards. According to arrest affidavits, at varying times over the last two months, the undercover agents arranged with the guards to smuggle packages of narcotics into the prison in exchange for money, often the sum of $200. Once inside the prison, the guards usually delivered the contraband to confidential informants who, in turn, would arrange to give the drugs to a ranking prison guard who was cooperating with the undercover sting. The contraband was always marked in a way that allowed investigators to prove that the drugs given to the accused guards were the same drugs that were returned to them. Fischi said the guards have been suspended from their jobs pending resolution of the prosecution. If found guilty, they would be fired, the warden said. Cunningham was being paid $35,545; Achey, $42,742 and Mason, $21,372. Mason's charge of trying to obtain altered, forged or counterfeit documents stems from allegations that he tried to obtain a Pennsylvania vehicle inspection sticker from a confidential police informant after explaining that he did not have insurance on his personal vehicle and could not obtain an inspection sticker through legal channels. Inmate Ceccarelli's charges stem from him accepting a package of contraband delivered to him by Officer Achey. Ceccarelli turned the package over to a confidential police informant who, in turn, gave the evidence to a corrections officer who was cooperating with the undercover drug sting. Ceccarelli was in prison on drug charges, stemming from an investigation into a heroin ring in the upper valley area. English's charges stems from a prison guard observing her pick up a round object wrapped in duct tape from the female yard area of the prison. Officer Brian Kruczek said he observed English put the object down her pants. The inmate was escorted inside and searched, but the object could not be found. She was then escorted to Geisinger Wyoming Valley Medical Center, Plains Township, where a physician performed an internal examination and retrieved a tennis ball-sized object containing marijuana. English leaped from the hospital gurney, shoved Officer Jodie Wozniak, causing her to fall and injure her left hand, wrist and right knee. English then fled into a hallway, where other correctional officers subdued her. English was in prison on a bad check charge. Lupas said other prison guards have expressed their appreciation to him for conducting this investigation to help weed out illicit drug trafficking in the prison. "I am particularly outraged because three of the defendants are officers of our corrections system who are well aware of the consequences of breaking the law. Now these officers face the possibility of being behind bars themselves," he said. Lupas said this kind of thing is a "black eye" for all corrections officers. But he quickly noted the many honest, dedicated prison guards in the system and asked the public "not to paint them with a wide brush." "We're weeding out the few bad apples so the good apples can continue doing their work." - --- MAP posted-by: Keith Brilhart