DOI: Rikers Island Correction Officer Caught With Razor-Edged Weapon
NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) -- A correction officer at Rikers Island was arrested this weekend, on charges that he came into the jail complex with a razor-edged weapon.
Officer Charles Bracey, 47, was arrested by the city Department of Investigation on Saturday after he was allegedly caught with the weapon, according to a news release from the department.
The weapon had a saw and razor edge, and was concealed in a paper sleeve and wrapped in black electrical tape, the department said.
DOI intelligence had learned that weapons were going to be smuggled into the jail during the Saturday shift, and Bracey was stopped during screening as he entered the Anna M. Kross Center to start work for the day Saturday, the DOI said.
"This is the seventh Correction employee DOI has arrested in the last five weeks on an array of charges contributing to violence and disorder within the city's jails. More arrests can be expected as DOI continues to intensify its widespread investigation into smuggling and violence at Rikers," DOI Commissioner Mark Peters said in a news release. "Already, based on DOI recommendations, the City Correction Department has enhanced its screening procedures and is helping us catch those individuals who seek to undermine safety behind bars."
Bracey was charged late Saturday evening with misdemeanor and felony charges of promoting prison contraband, the DOI said. He could face a total of eight years in prison if convicted.
Bracey had worked for the DOC since June 2006. He was suspended without pay upon his arrest, the DOI said.