Outside sources charged in alleged scheme to get drugs into Westmoreland jail

Four women who investigators said acted as outside sources were charged Wednesday in connection with an alleged year-long scheme that used fake legal mail to deliver drugs to the Westmoreland County Prison.

The women communicated with inmates to send them mail containing synthetic marijuana and pass them papers soaked in the drug during hearings at the county courthouse, according to court records.

Demetra Monike Franklin, 46, of Pittsburgh; Whitney J. Sumpter, 32, of Homestead; Lauren Sydney Banks, 22, of Jeannette; and Sandra Gonzalez-Morales, 23, of New Kensington, are charged with corrupt organizations, conspiracy, drug possession, criminal use of a communication facility and related offenses.

Also charged Tuesday was Donald Tyree Smith, 33, of Pittsburgh. He is the 10th inmate to face accusations.

Investigators unraveled the scheme after finding a sheet of paper detailing the operation that was left in the Hempfield lockup’s library, according to court documents. Then, they listened to inmate phone conversations to intercept packages containing synthetic marijuana and staked out hearings at the county courthouse.

The first arrests were made last month.

Jail officials in June 2018 started giving inmates photocopies instead of actual mail over concerns that the parcels might contain K2, or synthetic marijuana. After the change, county Detective James Williams said in criminal complaints that the “inmates switched to a scheme where it is shipping in supposedly legal mail.”

Legal mail is considered privileged and is not photocopied. Warden John Walton said he now checks with attorneys whose names are listed as the sender to verify they mailed the correspondence before handing it over to inmates.

Police said inmates in January would contact their wives, girlfriends or others, including Gonzalez-Morales, Banks and Sumpter, to arrange for mail soaked in or sprayed with K2 to be sent into the facility or delivered in person during court hearings. Investigators said the purported legal mail was marked with the return address of a Pittsburgh attorney who didn’t have a client at the jail.

Some of those mailings later tested positive for synthetic marijuana, including one found in Smith’s cell, according to court papers.

On July 22, detectives conducted a stakeout at the Greensburg courthouse after getting a tip that synthetic marijuana was going to be passed to inmates who had hearings that day. Investigators watched Sumpter and Takeya Shantail Woods, 24, of Jeannette, carrying papers at the Greensburg courthouse that later were passed to three men who have been charged in the scheme.

No court action had been scheduled in the five cases filed Wednesday. None of the suspects had attorneys listed in online court records.

Woods was charged last week. Also accused in the scheme are Tywan Devante David, 22, of Pittsburgh; Tarrae William Johnson, 28, of SCI-Greene; Shaquille Edward Pollard, 27, of SCI-Albion; Derrick Lamont Hart, 51, of Pittsburgh; Bari Coleman, 28, of Pittsburgh; Stefan S. Houser, 30, of Vandergrift; Dameon Jerod Hill, 30, of Pittsburgh’s Garfield neighborhood; Maurice Williams, 25, of Jeannette; and Sammie Edward Lane Jr., 31 of SCI-Greene.