By Stephen Baxter
Contra Costa Times
BEN LOMOND — A 52-year-old woman was arrested early this morning near the Ben Lomond Conservation Camp on Empire Grade Road after authorities said they saw her dump two bags full of meth, marijuana and other items outside the minimum security facility for inmates to retrieve, the CHP reported.
Rhoda Lea Dydo Nunley, of Wheatland, was arrested about 2:50 a.m. after officers said she dropped two large bags near the facility’s entrance, said CHP officer Sarah Jackson. Officers said they watched two inmates try to pick up the bags, and one of the intended recipients was Nunley’s adult son, the CHP said.
The bags contained meth, marijuana, tobacco, food, a cell phone and other items, authorities said.
Nunley was with another son, who is a minor, and the boy was taken into protective custody following Nunley’s arrest, the CHP said.
The California Department of Corrections is handling punishment for the two inmates, and the CHP is investigating Nunley, Jackson said.
The camp at 13575 Empire Grade Road is a state corrections facility for “minimum custody” adult male felons. The inmates form firefighting crews and work in other trades to earn money and gain job skills.