Inmate charged with smuggling drugs into Monroe County Jail

ROCHESTER, N.Y. — A Monroe County Jail inmate has been charged with promoting prison contraband after investigators determined he had smuggled drugs into the prison in his body.

Deputies charged Carlos Santana-Velazquez, 25, of Rochester, with three counts each of first- and second-degree promoting prison contraband.

The investigation started when, on July 23 just before 9 p.m., deputies working in the jail noticed an inmate stumbling and acting unwell, according to the county Sheriff’s Office. A medical evaluation showed he had swallowed an unknown substance. Deputies searched the affected housing unit of the jail and found contraband in a cell.

Deputies discovered the inmate, Santana-Velazquez, secreted contraband inside himself before going to jail on July 20. They used technology including a body scanner to recover substances including Suboxone and synthetic marijuana, the Sheriff’s Office said. Additional smoking-related contraband was recovered, including numerous matches.

He was arraigned and remanded to the jail on $50 cash bail.