JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – A corrections officer already under investigation was arrested early Sunday morning when officers said they caught him bringing methamphetamines and marijuana cigarettes into the jail.
Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office Undersheriff Pat Ivey said Hunter Jean, 24, was charged with three felonies: delivering and distributing meth, delivering and distributing marijuana, and introduction of contraband into corrections facility.
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Jean had been a JSO corrections officer for almost four years. He resigned from the Sheriff’s Office after he was arrested.
Ivey said Jean had been under investigation by the JSO integrity and special investigations since receiving a tip on Oct. 20 and it appears that Jean was being paid to delivering the drugs and was not the dealer. Ivey emphasized that the case is still under investigation and if anyone else was involved, “We’ll find them.”
Ivey said the drugs were confiscated before they reached any inmates on Sunday but they suspect this wasn’t the first time Jean smuggled contraband into the jail.
This was the 10th arrest of a JSO employee this year. Four of them were corrections officers, four were police officers and two were civilians. Ivey emphasized that that is a tiny fraction of the people who work at a fine law enforcement agency.
“I would encourage all law-abiding citizens to come apply with this agency," Ivey said. “The situation demonstrates that the members of this agency will not put up with this because, in essence, we got a tip. We have internal resources working on this and this is how we deal with it. So we have good jobs we encourage people to apply and let’s get rid of the bad apples.”