CHAMBERSBURG, Pa. — A corrections officer at Franklin County Jail has been charged with smuggling contraband into the facility to give to an inmate in exchange for money, according to State Police.
23-year-old Alando Wallace, of Chambersburg, is charged in the alleged crime along with his girlfriend, 21-year-old Abigail Price, who is accused of being part of the conspiracy, State Police claim.
Police say Wallace admitted to smuggling tobacco products and other contraband into the prison. Price received money for the transaction from the wife of an inmate at the prison through the payment app Venmo, investigators say.
Both are charged with two felonies and two misdemeanors related to the smuggling of contraband and criminal use of communication devices, according to criminal complaint affidavits filed against them.
Police say the investigation began when suspected contraband was discovered in an inmate's cell during an inspection on March 9.
Prison officials later logged a visit between the inmate and a family member, who was instructed by the inmate to pass a message to the inmate's wife, telling her to cooperate with authorities and share whatever knowledge she had about contraband being smuggled into the facility, according to police.
Investigators received information about Venmo payments that were traced to Price.
Text messages also recovered referenced dates when an unnamed individual was "off" for military duty or COVID-19 testing procedures and would be unable to make contact with the inmate.
A check of work logs showed those dates matched times when Wallace was not working due to military duty or due to COVID-19 protocols, the complaint states.
