Bronx District Attorney Darcel D. Clark and NYC Department of Investigation Commissioner Jocelyn E. Strauber announced on June 22 that a former NYC Department of Correction (DOC) officer, an inmate, and a civilian have been charged with smuggling a cellphone into the inmate at Rikers Island jail.

 

In the context of the announcement, Clark said, “The defendant, a correction officer at the time, allegedly took a $2,500 bribe for sneaking in an iPhone to an inmate. Contraband can lead to violence, and this officer tarnished his badge and put his fellow officers and inmates in danger. My office will not tolerate criminal activity by anyone who threatens safety in the jail.”

 

For his part, Strauber said, “This former City correction officer, as alleged, smuggled a cell phone to a person in custody on Rikers Island in exchange for cash. Contraband cellphones in City jails pose risks to both officers and inmates, and this officer, as charged, violated his duty to his fellow officers and to the public for a payout.” She added, “I thank the Department of Correction and the Bronx district attorney for their commitment to pursue officer misconduct that jeopardizes the safety of the jails to the full extent of the law.”

 

Clark said that Bennie Green, 36, of Yonkers, a former correction officer, was charged with third-degree bribe-receiving, first-degree promoting prison contraband, second-degree promoting criminal contraband and official misconduct. She said Barry Wells, 35, a Rikers Island inmate, was charged with third-degree bribery, first-degree promoting prison contraband, and second-degree promoting prison contraband.

 

Finally, she said Starquiasha Singletary, 32, of The Bronx, a civilian, was indicted on first-degree promoting prison contraband, and second-degree promoting prison contraband. She said Green and Singletary were arraigned on June 22 before Bronx Supreme Court Justice George Villegas and are due back in court on Sept. 14, 2023. Wells will be arraigned at a later date according to the Bronx DA’s office.

 

According to the investigation, Wells allegedly instructed Singletary to buy him an iPhone. Through a series of calls between July 30, 2021, and August 5, 2021, Wells and Singletary made arrangements for the cell phone to be picked up from Singletary on August 4, 2021. Phone records revealed that Green called the cell phone multiple times on August 4, 2021.

 

On the following day, August 5, 2021, surveillance videos show Green entering Wells’ cell in the Anna M. Kross Center. A few hours later, an associate of Wells sent three separate Zelle payments to Green, totaling $2,500.

 

The case is being prosecuted by Assistant District Attorney Cassie Perez of the public integrity bureau, under the supervision of Sarah Clements, supervisor of the public integrity bureau, Omer Wiczyk, chief of the public integrity bureau, and under the overall supervision of Denise Kodjo, deputy chief of the investigations division, and Wanda Perez-Maldonado, chief of the investigations division.

 

Clark thanked Trial Preparation Assistant Nathanielle Filius of the public integrity bureau, the Department of Investigation’s Office of the Inspector General for DOC, specifically Deputy Inspector General Richard Askin, under the supervision of Inspector General Whitney Ferguson and Deputy Commissioner/Chief of Investigations Dominick Zarrella.

 

A person arrested and charged with a crime is deemed innocent unless and until convicted in a court of law.