[Atlanta Journal-Constipation] An investigation into alleged corruption at the U.S. Penitentiary in Atlanta has led federal officials to ban several prison staffers and nearly empty out the prison, transferring about 1,100 offenders to correctional facilities in other states , The Atlanta Journal-Constitution has learned.As of Friday, 134 inmates remained inside the Atlanta prison, according to its official website. Back in March, it had more than 1,800 inmates. Employees have been told that ultimately all prisoners from the penitentiary and inmates at the adjacent minimum security camp will be transferred.
The prison went into an institutional lockdown on June 22 after receiving a "serious threat" and an institution emergency was declared, a staff memo obtained by the AJC states. Two days later, an official with the Federal Bureau of Prisons told the staff in a follow-up memo the lockdown was being extended after investigators discovered a "prevalence of narcotics and cellular devices being used by the inmate population."
That same day a prison teacher found 24 cell phones, 30 chargers, ear buds, Under Armour long underwear, wrapped bundles of a "leafy substance," weed grinders, assorted chains and necklaces and one bottle of air freshener. And that was just in the Education Department.
A little more than two weeks later, BOP sent out memos notifying staff that four senior officers, along with one wage supervisor, had been barred from the federal pen and should not be allowed entry "under any circumstance."
They were barred "in the interest of the efficiency of the service," the memos stated.
To employees at the prison, though, the opaque wording concealed nothing. One complained that the Bureau of Prisons had "gone nuclear" in rooting out problem employees, while others said an overhaul was long overdue.
"We’ve been shouting from the rooftops for years and they didn’t do a damn thing," said one longtime employee, who fears losing his job if his identity were revealed. "It’s been a long time coming."
Inmates were transferred out the last week of July.
The Bureau of Prisons did not respond to a request for comment.
The southeast Atlanta complex is a medium-security prison for men. The complex also has a detention center for pre-trial detainees and inmates being held for transfer, as well as an adjacent camp for minimum security inmates.
Evidence has piled up in recent years about lax security at the complex, with lapses blamed at times on inadequate staffing. Tales of raucous parties and free-flowing contraband, though, pointed to staff complicity.