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Five of the defendants, including three Westchester County corrections officers and two civilian employees, were arrested on Tuesday, June 11, and arraigned in Mount Pleasant Justice Court on Thursday, June 20, the Westchester County District Attorney's Office announced.
According to the DA's Office, the five defendants allegedly smuggled contraband to inmates at the Westchester County Jail in Valhalla. The five arrested on charges in connection to this include:
- New Rochelle resident Peter Cumberbatch, age 39: A Westchester County correction officer, Cumberbatch allegedly accepted an $800 payment from an inmate's associate in exchange for smuggling contraband into the jail in March 2023, officials said. He was suspended after his arrest and is now being scheduled for an employment termination hearing;
- Peekskill resident Shakia Smythe, age 32: A Westchester County correction officer, Smythe allegedly accepted multiple payments totaling over $500 from an inmate's associate in exchange for smuggling contraband into the jail between June and August 2022, officials said. She was suspended after her arrest and is now being scheduled for an employment termination hearing;
- Briarcliff Manor resident Wilfredo Gonzague, age 36: A former Westchester County correction officer, Gonzague allegedly accepted payments totaling more than $2,000 from an inmate's associate for smuggling contraband into the jail between September 2022 and February 2023, according to officials. He was terminated from the Department of Corrections in February 2023;
- Bronx resident Sadari Holt, age 30: A former employee of a Westchester County-contracted vendor that provides commissionary services to the Westchester County Jail, Holt allegedly accepted payments totaling more than $1,500 from two inmates' associates between December 2021 and April 2022, officials said. Holt's security clearance was revoked by the Department of Corrections in April 2022;
- Yonkers resident Shardae Moore, age 35: A former employee of a County-contracted vendor that provides commissionary services to the Westchester County Jail, Moore allegedly accepted a $500 payment from an inmate's associate in December 2023, officials said. Moore's security clearance was revoked by the Department of Corrections in December 2023.
All five defendants were charged with various counts of third-degree bribe-receiving, a felony, in addition to other charges.
Additionally, on Monday, May 20, the DA's Office arrested Mount Vernon resident Sean Rogers, age 40, who worked as a civilian jailor with the Mount Vernon Police Department. According to officials, Rogers allegedly delivered three cylindrical objects wrapped in electrical tape containing a "leafy substance" to an inmate awaiting a court appearance at the department's cell block on Monday, March 11.
After his arrest, Rogers was charged with second-degree promoting prison contraband and arraigned in Mount Vernon City Court on Monday, June 3. He will next appear in court on Tuesday, July 9.
Westchester County District Attorney Miriam Rocah condemned the defendants' alleged actions in a statement:
"These defendants put their own interests above the safety of incarcerated individuals, employees, civilians, and other correction officers," Rocah said, adding, "Our jails become less safe when correction officers and others in position of public trust accept bribes to smuggle in contraband."
Westchester County Department of Correction Commissioner Joseph Spano also gave a statement on the arrests, saying the defendants "disgraced the shield that they once wore and violated the trust we put in them to uphold the law and work with integrity."
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