Authorities have arrested yet another Broward Department of detention worker after they say he tried to bring contraband into one of their jails.
Tavares West, 34, was arrested Wednesday when he arrived for work at the North Broward Detention Center with a bag of contraband he'd been paid to deliver to an inmate, police said.
The Broward Sheriff's Office says West, a detention technician, had demanded $400 dollars to bring a plastic bag containing a pair of headphones, eight AAA batteries, a pack of Newport cigarettes and two grams of cocaine to an inmate.
Unfortunately for West, he was part of an ongoing undercover sting to nab smuggling jail workers.
Police say West had smuggled items into the jail on several occasions dating back to last December.
West was charged with introducing contraband into a detention facility, official misconduct and possession of cocaine and has been suspended without pay. It was not immediately known whether he had an attorney.
The arrest of West is the latest in the BSO's crackdown on illegal contraband inside its jails. Three deputies, two former deputies, a technician, a nurse and four inmates have been arrested since January.
Lieutenant Colonel Kim Spadaro, Director of the Department of Detention, sent a letter to all DOD employees Wednesday, asking them to keep an eye out for other employees who may be bringing contraband to inmates.
I promised you that this investigation would not be closed out until every last person was held accountable for putting all of our safety in danger, and I am holding true to that promise," Spadaro wrote. "To all of you who are as sickened by this as I am, please remain vigilant in doing your job, and do not tolerate things that you know are not right. I am here to support you, and ask for your support in continuing to clean up this system."
