Indictments: Prisoners used cellphones to run crime rings

Inmates, with the help of prison employees are increasingly using smuggled cellphones to run criminal operations from jail, according to a news release by the U.S. Attorney’s Office in the Northern District of Georgia announcing the unsealing of two indictments.

The two indictments were handed down for a dozen people alleged to have roles in the networks: four current inmates, three parolees, one former Georgia Department of Corrections employee, one former corrections contractor and three civilians.

The indictments state the cell phones “are used to traffic drugs, commit fraud schemes and organize criminal activity both inside and outside of prison”.

Authorities also say Morris used the smuggled cellphones to commit identity fraud and wire fraud.

“Cut it open, cleaned out the contents of the body and used the carcass to stuff several cellphones and several rolls of smokeless tobacco back inside”.

It was not immediately clear Thursday whether any of those accused in the indictments has a lawyer.

Horne said the investigation is on-going, but declined to say whether it would extend to other state prisons. He bragged, “pop them all off, kids, grandmamas, daddies, I don’t give a [expletive], right?”.

Hinley instructed an associate at Telfair State Prison to kill another inmate he believed would likely testify against Hinley’s girlfriend in a drug trafficking case, the indictment says.

In cellphone conversations captured by a wiretap, Silvers bragged that his cellmate was watching a movie on his phone while they were in the hole and also talked about posting on Facebook and buying shoes online.

Bryson said the indictments present a good start to addressing the issue, and that the state may have to changes to some of its staffing policies.

At Phillips State Prison, which houses adult male inmates, members of the Ghostface Gang Mims Morris, Johnathan Silvers and Adam Smith allegedly conducted illegal business while serving time, according to the press release.

Charonda Edwards, 29, a kitchen worker at Phillips State Prison, in Buford, Georgia, was charged with extortion and conspiring to distribute methamphetamine and marijuana. They relied on prison orderlies and other inmates to move drugs, cellphones and other items they sold to other inmates.

In one scheme an inmate used a cellphone to call to a woman and pretended to be a credit card representative handling fraud cases.