By C1 Staff
HINDS COUNTY, Miss. — Prison officials in Mississippi are investigating a number of contraband finds, which caused prisons to go into lockdown over the weekend.
WDAM reports that authorities found shanks, cell phones, charges, spice and even weapons.
“Apparently there was too much time allowed between checks for all of this to happen,” said Phyllis Bowen, a taxpayer concerned with issues at Hinds County Jail, where some of the contraband was found.
WDAM-TV 7-News, Weather, Sports-Hattiesburg, MS
Hinds County Supervisor Robert Graham says the contraband is an ongoing problem.
“We appropriate over $100,000 to repair the windows at the jail and we want to make sure we do it as quickly as we possibly can,” he said. “It may not be quick enough because as soon as we did one, [the inmates] tear up two.”
Four juvenile inmates were able to escape through a broken window in April, using a rope made of blankets tied together. All four have since been recaptured, but their escape prompted the repairs.
The board of supervisors has also invested $5.6 million dollars in upgrades to the Raymond Detention Center.
Many , however, believe a new jail is needed.
“I think the board is dealing with band aids when we need a whole new solution,” said State Senator John Horhn. “Trying to repair what’s broken and the way the jail is broken, it’s pouring good money out the bag.”