Commissioner: Timothy C. Ward

Director of Public Affairs: Joan Heath

More than 9,600 items seized

FORSYTH, Ga. — As part of ongoing efforts to prevent contraband from entering our facilities, the Georgia Department of Corrections (GDC) seized a total of 9,657contraband items during the first quarter of 2019. The agency continuously makes improvements to our processes in addition to utilizing full-facility shakedowns to combat contraband entering our facilities.  

“Contraband entering our facilities is an ongoing battle the department faces on a daily basis, said Timothy C. Ward, the commissioner of the GDC. “We are continually reviewing our practices and procedures to ensure we remain attentive to our mission of creating safe and secure facilities.”

Through the collaboration of our Office of Professional Standards, GDC Tactical Squads and K9 Units, the following items were confiscated between January and March 2019:

  • 1,677 cell phones
  • 655 cell phone chargers
  • 3,470 handmade weapons
  • 11,546.31 grams of marijuana (363 bags/balloons)
  • 71,244.14 grams of tobacco (1,313 bags/balloons)
  • 2,568.71 grams of methamphetamine (136 bags/balloons)
  • 2,564.52 ounces of alcohol (191 bottles)
  • 175 pills
  • 24 syringes
  • 14 SIM/SD cards    

The GDC also utilized shakedown operations to detect 1,639 items in the first quarter of 2019. A total of 22 shakedowns were completed at 12 of the 32 state prisons.

First quarter shakedown seizures included:

  • 168 cell phones
  • 1,192 handmade weapons
  • 1361.9 grams of marijuana (18 occurrences)
  • 1216 grams of tobacco (14 occurrences)
  • 1060.9 grams of methamphetamine (12 occurrences)
  • 88.8 gallons of homemade alcohol (7 occurrences)
  • 228 unidentified pills

About the Georgia Department of Corrections (GDC)

The Georgia Department of Corrections (GDC) has one of the largest prison systems in the U.S. and is responsible for supervising nearly 52,000 state prisoners. It is the largest law enforcement agency in the state with approximately 10,500 employees. For more information on the GDC, call 478-992-5247 or visit https://gdc.georgia.gov.

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