DEKALB COUNTY, Ga. — The DeKalb County Sheriff's Office is cracking down on inmate contraband in a multi-agency jail sweep Wednesday.
Operation Spring Clean was the second in a series of unscheduled jail sweeps, where more than 50 law enforcement officers and K-9s swarmed several floors of the Fulton County Jail to find cell phones, smoking paraphernalia and other items that are unauthorized for inmates.
The DeKalb County Sheriff’s J.E.S. Team and K-9 Unit, Fulton County Sheriff’s Office, Fayette County Sheriff’s Office and DeKalb Police Department K-9 Unit all assisted in the sweep.
“We routinely monitor inmate activity in search of unauthorized items inside housing units,” DeKalb Sheriff Melody M. Maddox said. “From time to time, though, we have found it useful to demonstrate how serious we are about eliminating contraband inside our jail. When we show up unexpectedly and with larger than normal manpower, the results can be surprising.”
Maddox added during a press conference Wednesday afternoon that this continues to be a dilemma for all agencies involved and it will not be tolerated.
"It becomes a community problem if we do not take hold of this right now," she said.
In Wednesday's sweep, nearly 15 shanks, three cellphones, a contraband line, known as a fishing line and some other unauthorized items were collected from the inmates. You can see what was collected in the photo below.
DeKalb County Chief Deputy Randy Akies said the operation was a success.
Akies said Operation Spring Clean was put together for three main reasons:
1. To combat crime and contraband within the jail.
2. To protect our staff members and the rest of the inmate population.
3. To protect all citizens, judges, and all other elected officials inside of the DeKalb County Courthouse complexes.
"What takes place in jail operations, certainly has the potential to filter over into inmates while they're being transported to the DeKalb County court complexes," Akies said.
Operation Spring Clean was an extension of Operation Eyes in the Sky, which has been taking place since January of this year. Several weeks ago, law enforcement apprehended several people outside the jail attempting to make a contraband drop.
“We will continue to do whatever we need to do to protect those in our custody, our staff and the public from the threats posed by the existence of contraband in the jails,” Sheriff Maddox said. “That includes collaborating with our fellow sheriffs’ offices to curb this criminal activity across the metro area. Crime never stays in one jurisdiction. It moves about and causes problems for all our communities.”