By Brian Badzmierowski
The Patriot Ledger
NORFOLK, Mass. — A corrections officer at the state prison in Norfolk was arrested Monday on charges that he tried to smuggle heroin to inmates.
Ronald McGinn Jr., 40, of Bridgewater was caught setting up a deal in which he would smuggle an ounce of heroin into the Norfolk prison, the state’s largest medium-security prison, and would collect $2,500 for the job, according to an FBI affidavit on file in U.S. District Court in Boston.
The FBI caught wind of the operation when a lieutenant from the state Department of Correction called in with a tip in January, the affidavit says.
With the help of an inmate and an undercover agent posing as a heroin dealer, the FBI was able to catch McGinn in the act, authorities said. He allegedly bought an ounce of heroin and was given $1,000 as a down payment on the $2,500.
According to an affidavit provided by an FBI special agent, McGinn had been involved in the smuggling of cell phones, iPods, creatine and narcotics to inmates for the last few years.
If McGinn is convicted, he could face up to 20 years in prison followed by five years of supervised release and a $1 million fine, according to the U.S. Department of Justice.
Copyright 2011 The Patriot Ledger