HARRIS COUNTY, Texas — A Harris County Jail detention officer is the latest to face charges involving the investigation of illegal drugs being smuggled into the jail.
Robert Robertson, 24, was arrested Wednesday morning when he showed up for his shift and immediately suspended, Harris County Sheriff Ed Gonzalez announced at a news conference.
The sheriff said Robertson smuggled paper laced with marijuana and K-2 synthetic marijuana into the jail. He is charged with engaging in organized crime.
“He essentially has used his position as a detention officer to escape scrutiny and smuggle drugs into the Harris County Jail,” Assistant Harris County District Attorney Kimberly Smith said.
Robertson has been with HCSO for six years. If convicted, he could get up to 20 years in prison.
Two convicted felons with a history of drug abuse were also linked to the investigation and could face charges in the ongoing investigation, according to Smith.
“This is truly the unraveling of a deadly drug smuggling ring,” she said.
Gonzalez launched the investigation earlier this year after a dramatic increase in drug overdoses in the jail that included at least two deaths.
“We’re going to be relentless on this,” the sheriff said Wednesday.
There could be more arrests in the months-long investigation.
“These arrests should serve as a strong warning to those who try to sell drugs in our jail,” Gonzalez said. “We will catch you and you will face tough consequences.”
Two defense attorneys arrested
Earlier this month, a Houston attorney was also accused of smuggling drugs into the jail.
Longtime defense attorney Ronald Lewis, 77, was charged with having a prohibited substance in a correctional facility. The felony carries a sentence of up to 10 years in prison. Lewis was released after posting a $15,000 bond.
Gonzalez said his team was ready when Lewis visited the jail on Nov. 17. They arrested him and said they found multiple sheets of paper that were contaminated with a substance that's being tested to find out what it is.
Authorities said the investigation revealed that Lewis smuggled in drug-laced papers to the inmates at the Baker Street jail for at least the last four months. They said the retired defense attorney smuggled in 154 laced pieces of paper and distributed them to 14 different inmates. He was arrested after a four-month investigation.
Detectives said the inmates would pay Lewis between $250 and $500 for the drug-laced papers.
KHOU 11 News legal analyst Carmen Roe said Lewis could be in more serious trouble depending on the results of autopsies.
"When these autopsies come back, if they connect these two deaths, they're going to charge him with murder," Roe said.
As of last week, the second attorney hadn't been formally charged so we're not naming him yet.