Federal prosecutors announced on Wednesday, Jan. 8, that Ghislaine Barrientos, a former corrections officer, has pleaded guilty to bribery  in exchange for smuggling cocaine into Rikers Island jail.

 

Edward Y. Kim, acting U.S. attorney for the Southern District of New York, said Barrientos pled guilty before U.S. District Judge Gregory H. Woods and is scheduled to be sentenced in April. “Rikers Island is less safe, for inmates and officers alike, when corrections officers and others in positions of public trust accept bribes to smuggle contraband,” said Kim. “We will not tolerate any breach of trust or corruption that jeopardizes the well-being of inmates and staff.”

 

As reflected in the criminal complaint, information, and statements made in court, the former NYC Department of Correction (“DOC”) officer, conspired with others to smuggle contraband, including cocaine, smokeable synthetic cannabinoids (known as “K2”), and food to inmates housed at the Robert N. Davoren Complex on Rikers Island in exchange for thousands of dollars in bribe payments.

 

The court heard that for example, on April 11, 2024, CC-1, an associate of an inmate (“Inmate-1”) and Barrientos discussed CC-1 sending Barrientos a package through a delivery service. On April 15, 2024, surveillance footage showed Barrientos entering Inmate-1’s cell, where surveillance footage could not capture her actions. Two days later, DOC searched Inmate-1’s cell and recovered sheets of paper that tested positive for the presence of cocaine.

The court heard that on April 24, 2024, CC-1 sent Barrientos another package using the delivery service. When Barrientos went to work later that day, a drug-detecting canine alerted for the presence of narcotics. DOC employees searched Barrientos’s belongings and found approximately 10 sheets of paper that tested positive for the presence of K2.

 

In an interview with law enforcement, Barrientos falsely stated, among other things, that no inmate had ever asked her to bring them contraband. Prosecutors said that law enforcement officers then searched Barrientos’s vehicle and recovered additional sheets of paper, as well as around $2,466 in cash.

 

Barrientos, 37, of Mount Vernon, NY, pled guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit federal program bribery, which carries a maximum sentence of five years in prison. The statutory maximum sentence in this case is prescribed by Congress and is provided for informational purposes only. Any sentencing of Barrientos will be determined by the judge.

Kim praised what she said was the outstanding investigative work of the FBI and NYC Department of Investigation. The case is being handled by the Southern District of New York’s Public Corruption and Narcotics Units. Assistant U.S. Attorney Jeffrey Coyle is leading the prosecution.