Federal Prisoner Sentenced To 2 Years For Scheming To Sneak Drugs Into RI Detention Center

PROVIDENCE, RI — A federal prisoner already serving 10 years was sentenced to another two for scheming to sneak drugs into a Rhode Island Detention Center, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office.

Randy Diaz-Pizarro, 34, will serve the additional two years after he completes the first 10, the U.S. Attorney's Office said in a media release.

Diaz-Pizarro conspired to sneak synthetic cannabinoids into the Donald W. Wyatt Detention Facility, the release said.

"According to court documents, Diaz-Pizarro worked with several co-conspirators, including another inmate, a detention facility employee, and an individual outside the facility, to smuggle drug-soaked paper into the prison," the release said.

"Diaz-Pizarro directed and coordinated payments and communications related to the scheme," according to the release. "The contraband was intended for personal use and distribution among the inmates."

In the release, First Assistant United States Attorney Charles C. Calenda spoke of the dangers posed by smuggling drugs into jails.

"Correctional facilities cannot operate safely when inmates and their associates attempt to turn them into marketplaces for illegal drugs," Calenda said.

“This type of criminal conduct undermines the safety and security of these institutions and puts both staff and inmates at risk," he said. "A prison sentence is not an opportunity to continue criminal activity, and those who do so risk adding years to their incarceration.”

In the release, Ted E. Docks, the special agent in charge of the FBI's Boston Division, called the sentence a "warning."

“Randy Diaz-Pizarro is an unrepentant career criminal who smuggled drug-soaked papers into a detention center not only for his own use, but for his fellow inmates to purchase," Docks said. "His blatant disregard of the law undermined the safety of this facility.”

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