Former detention officer arrested for allegedly smuggling narcotics into jails

December 3, 2008 - 10:01 PM

A former detention officer with the Cameron County Sheriff's Department was arrested Wednesday by sheriff's investigators for allegedly smuggling narcotics into county jails.

According to a department press release, the arrest of former detention officer Gabel Jacques Gonzalez was the result of an investigation by the sheriff's criminal investigations division and special investigations unit.

The release states that Gonzalez met with a confidential source and an undercover officer from the Drug Enforcement Administration in order to receive an unspecified amount of marijuana to be smuggled into county jail facilities. Once the suspect accepted the drugs and agreed to the smuggling, sheriff's investigators arrested him.

Gonzalez's age and time with the department were not immediately available.

He was booked into the Cameron County Jail System and was pending arraignment on two charges, Class B misdemeanor possession of marijuana and felony third degree attempted introduction of a prohibited substance on a correction facility, authorities said.