Ex-prison guards sentenced for drug trafficking, extortion
ATLANTA (AP) - A federal jury has convicted four former Georgia prison guards on bribery and drug trafficking charges.
Prosecutors say Jeremy Fluellen, Chelsey Mayweather, Tramaine Tucker and Christopher Williams were convicted this week on charges of cocaine and methamphetamine distribution and extortion under color of official right. They are scheduled to be sentenced in July.
Before the case went to trial, 44 other corrections officers pleaded guilty in a string of cases related to an investigation into Georgia prisons.
FBI investigators found that correctional officers were smuggling contraband into state prisons.
Prosecutors say the investigation also found that numerous correctional officers were willing to use their law enforcement status to protect what they believed were drug deals in return for cash bribe payments.