Drug-smuggling ring uncovered at Lawton private prison

Tuesday, June 21st 2005, 5:46 am

By: News On 6

LAWTON, Okla. (AP) -- A multi-county grand jury investigation has begun into a drug-smuggling ring that provided inmates at a private prison with marijuana, methamphetamine, cocaine and heroine.

The Oklahoma Bureau of Narcotics and Dangerous Drugs Control says officials have tracked more than $200,000 coming from 14 states used to buy the drugs for inmates at the Lawton Correctional Facility. At least 100 inmates are suspected customers.

Court records indicate inmates and their families organized the shipments and a guard suspected of helping run the operation brought the drugs from Oklahoma City.

The prison houses about 1,900 medium- and minimum-security inmates. About one in five were convicted of drug crimes.