ATWATER, CA - Prosecutors have announced charges against a federal prison inmate and two other people after a mailroom supervisor died from opening a letter that was laced with fentanyl and other drugs.
According to ABC News, all three have been charged with conspiring to mail drugs to a penitentiary. Prosecutors said that Jamar Jones, an inmate housed at the U.S. Penitentiary (USP) in Atwater, California, plotted with Stephanie Ferriera and Jermen Rudd to send him drugs that he could sell within the prison. Investigators said that Ferriera and Rudd disguised the shipment as "legal mail" from a law office.
On Friday, August 9th, the penitentiary's mailroom supervisor, Marc Fischer got sick after opening a letter addressed to Jones. An FBI affidavit filed in connection with the charges states that the letter addressed to Jones contained multiple pages that appeared to be "soaked" or "coated" with drugs. The affidavit says that within five minutes of opening the mail, Fischer started to stumble around and asked for medical help, telling a colleague, "I don't feel good, it's going up my arm." He was taken to a nearby hospital where he died two hours later.
According to WCAX, an autopsy found the officer's cause of death to be "undetermined," pending toxicology reports. Officials said no obvious causes of death were found aside from coming into contact with the narcotics.
Ferriera, 35, is from Indiana, and Rudd, 37, is from Missouri. According to Fox News, between July 15th and August 9th, Jones and Ferriera had Rudd mail a package laced with drugs that was fraudulently labeled as legal mail.
The Department of Justice (DOJ) said that another correctional officer became ill after handling the package, but later recovered. Federal officials said that the package handled by the officers "tested presumptively positive for amphetamines, fentanyl, and 'spice,' or synthetic cannabinoids, among other substances."
The director of the Federal Prisons released a statement saying, "On Friday, August 9th, USP Atwater and the Federal Bureau of Prisons lost one of our own. Tragically, despite swift response from his co-workers and local emergency medical services, Supervisory Correctional Systems Specialist Marc Fischer was pronounced deceased upon arriving at the local hospital following his exposure to mail saturated in an unknown substance. My deepest sympathy goes out to Mr. Fischer's family, the employees of USP Atwater, and our entire agency as we grieve his untimely death."
Fischer leaves behind a wife, his son and his daughter.
On Tuesday, August 20th, Jones, Ferreira, and Rudd were all arrested. Each has been charged with a criminal complaint with conspiring to distribute controlled substances and introducing narcotic drugs to an inmate at USP Atwater. Ferreira will be arraigned in the Southern District of Indiana, Rudd will be arraigned in the Eastern District of Missouri, and Jones will make his initial court appearance in Fresno. In convicted, each defendant faces between 20 and 30 years in prison and a fine of up to $250,000.
According to ABC News, all three have been charged with conspiring to mail drugs to a penitentiary. Prosecutors said that Jamar Jones, an inmate housed at the U.S. Penitentiary (USP) in Atwater, California, plotted with Stephanie Ferriera and Jermen Rudd to send him drugs that he could sell within the prison. Investigators said that Ferriera and Rudd disguised the shipment as "legal mail" from a law office.
On Friday, August 9th, the penitentiary's mailroom supervisor, Marc Fischer got sick after opening a letter addressed to Jones. An FBI affidavit filed in connection with the charges states that the letter addressed to Jones contained multiple pages that appeared to be "soaked" or "coated" with drugs. The affidavit says that within five minutes of opening the mail, Fischer started to stumble around and asked for medical help, telling a colleague, "I don't feel good, it's going up my arm." He was taken to a nearby hospital where he died two hours later.
According to WCAX, an autopsy found the officer's cause of death to be "undetermined," pending toxicology reports. Officials said no obvious causes of death were found aside from coming into contact with the narcotics.
Ferriera, 35, is from Indiana, and Rudd, 37, is from Missouri. According to Fox News, between July 15th and August 9th, Jones and Ferriera had Rudd mail a package laced with drugs that was fraudulently labeled as legal mail.
The Department of Justice (DOJ) said that another correctional officer became ill after handling the package, but later recovered. Federal officials said that the package handled by the officers "tested presumptively positive for amphetamines, fentanyl, and 'spice,' or synthetic cannabinoids, among other substances."
The director of the Federal Prisons released a statement saying, "On Friday, August 9th, USP Atwater and the Federal Bureau of Prisons lost one of our own. Tragically, despite swift response from his co-workers and local emergency medical services, Supervisory Correctional Systems Specialist Marc Fischer was pronounced deceased upon arriving at the local hospital following his exposure to mail saturated in an unknown substance. My deepest sympathy goes out to Mr. Fischer's family, the employees of USP Atwater, and our entire agency as we grieve his untimely death."
Fischer leaves behind a wife, his son and his daughter.
On Tuesday, August 20th, Jones, Ferreira, and Rudd were all arrested. Each has been charged with a criminal complaint with conspiring to distribute controlled substances and introducing narcotic drugs to an inmate at USP Atwater. Ferreira will be arraigned in the Southern District of Indiana, Rudd will be arraigned in the Eastern District of Missouri, and Jones will make his initial court appearance in Fresno. In convicted, each defendant faces between 20 and 30 years in prison and a fine of up to $250,000.
For corrections or revisions, click here.
The opinions reflected in this article are not necessarily the opinions of LET
Comments