Suspended Corrections Officer Smuggled Drugs For Inmate: AG

A suspended senior corrections officer from South Jersey has been indicted on charges that he conspired to smuggle the opioid painkillers oxycodone and suboxone into South Woods State Prison in exchange for money, Attorney General Gurbir S. Grewal announced on Wednesday.

David Cade, 53, of Clayton, was indicted by a state grand jury on charges of second-degree conspiracy, official misconduct, bribery in official matters, and acceptance or receipt of unlawful benefit by a public servant for official behavior, as well as third-degree distribution of the opioid suboxone. Cade was suspended from his position as a senior correctional police officer after his arrest in April.

Cade is accused of working with an inmate and a woman outside the prison to smuggle oxycodone and suboxone into the prison in March and April of this year. Police said the inmate paid Cade $1,000 for the smuggled drugs.

As part of the alleged deal, Cade agreed to sell suboxone strips — films containing suboxone that dissolve in the mouth — to the woman for her use, police said. Police said Cade sold her 21 suboxone strips, and collected $1,000 and 50 pills to be smuggled into the prison during an alleged drug deal on April 18. New Jersey State

Police immediately arrested Cade after this exchange, and took his service firearm, police said. State police had been investigating Cade after New Jersey Department of Corrections Office of Professional Standards learned about Cade’s alleged actions and referred the matter to them.

Second-degree charges carry a sentence of five to 10 years in state prison and a fine of up to $150,000, while third-degree charges carry a sentence of three to five years in prison and a fine of up to $15,000. The second-degree charges of official misconduct, bribery, and receipt of unlawful benefit by a public servant for official behavior carry a mandatory minimum period of parole ineligibility of five years.

The indictment was handed up to Superior Court Judge Peter E. Warshaw in Mercer County, who assigned the case to Gloucester County, where Cade will be ordered to appear in court at a later date for arraignment on the charges.

The Division of Criminal Justice has a toll-free Corruption Tipline 1-866-TIPS-4CJ for the public to report corruption, financial crime and other illegal activities confidentially. The public can also log on to the Division webpage at www.njdcj.org to report suspected wrongdoing confidentially.

The Attorney General’s Office has an Anti-Corruption Reward Program that offers a reward of up to $25,000 for tips from the public leading to a conviction for a crime involving public corruption. Information is posted on the Attorney General’s website at: http://nj.gov/oag/corruption/reward.html.

The attached image of David Cade was provided by the Attorney General’s Office