A former corrections officer entered a guilty plea in federal court to charges of bribery of a public official and conspiracy on Thursday in federal court.
Acting U.S. Attorney Stephen Kaufman said 26-year-old Alex Lewis, formerly of Home Station, was one of two people indicted back in November of last year in the scheme where cell phones were smuggled into the Indiana County Jail to go to federal detainees. Lewis, a former corrections officer at the jail, admitted in court that between June and August of 2019, he was in contact with co-defendant Rashon Richardson and accepted bribes from him through a go-between outside the jail.
In exchange, Lewis admitted smuggling multiple contraband cell phones into the jail for use by Richardson and other federal detainees.
Richardson has pleaded not guilty, and his case is pending before U.S. District Judge Cathy Bissoon, who heard Lewis’ pleas yesterday.
Kaufman said in his statement that Lewis’ “corrupt actions demonstrated a complete lack of integrity and compromised the security of the facility where he worked.”
Lewis could face up to five years in prison for the conspiracy charge, up to 15 years for the bribery charge, and a fine of no more than $250,000 for each count. The sentence will take into account any prior criminal history and the seriousness of the offenses.
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