DARTMOUTH — A Bristol County correctional officer has been arrested on drug charges for allegedly bringing contraband into the Dartmouth House of Correction. Authorities say 20-year-old Marco Moniz of Fall River was arrested while on duty Tuesday and charged with conspiracy to violate drug laws and delivering contraband to a penal institution. He is scheduled to be arraigned Thursday. A sheriff’s office spokesman could not be more specific on what was brought into the jail. Sheriff Thomas Hodgson said in as statement that he was "deeply saddened" that a sworn officer "violated the badge he wears and the trust it implies." But Hodgson praised those who conducted the investigation. http://bostonherald.com/news/regional/view.bg?articleid=1151709&srvc=next_article Officer accused of contraband delivery By John Moss Herald News Staff Reporter Posted Feb 11, 2009 @ 06:43 PM Last update Feb 11, 2009 @ 06:49 PM Dartmouth — A Bristol County correctional officer from Fall River was arrested Wednesday while on duty at the House of Correction for allegedly delivering contraband to the penal facility. Marco Moniz, 20, of 928 Cherry St., Fall River,is also charged with conspiracy to violate drug laws. Major Nelson DeGouveia of the Bristol County Sheriff’s Office and Lt. John Silva of that office’s Internal Affairs Division made the arrest. DeGouveia of the Law Enforcement Division of the Sheriff’s Office is assigned to the South Coast Anti-Crime Task Force. Bernard Sullivan, a spokesman for the Sheriff’s Office, said he did not immediately know what kind of contraband was involved as the investigation is ongoing. Moniz was held overnight for arraignment today in Third District Court, New Bedford. The arrest was a result of a textbook collaborative effort by Fall River, Fairhaven and New Bedford police, assigned to the Drug Enforcement Agency and District Attorney C. Samuel Sutter’s Office. Sheriff Thomas M. Hodgson expressed pride in the performance of members of the task force, internal affairs units and Sutter’s office. “While I am deeply saddened when a sworn officer violates the badge he wears and the trust it implies, I am exceptionally pleased that our officers joined in a collaborative that conducted an extensive investigation that will, I hope, result in an end to criminal activity that is a danger to my officers, the inmates and the entire staff of our office,” Hodgson stated. “Policing our own is not pleasant, but it is necessary to maintain the pride we have in the conduct of the staff of our correctional officers, who perform with pride the most difficult job in law enforcement,” he said. http://www.heraldnews.com/police_an...nal-officer-accused-of-bringing-in-contraband
Jury finds correctional officer from Fall River not guilty in drug caseFALL RIVER — Three years and six months after the burden was placed on his back, Marco Moniz said he felt it lifted. It disappeared in an instant, Moniz said, when a jury announced Moniz was not guilty. “I feel a weight has been taken off my shoulders,” Moniz said Thursday. "I thank the jury and Mr. Barone, who is an amazing lawyer.” Defense lawyer Theodore Barone presented a case during the 4-day trial, contending internal affairs officers at the Bristol County House of Correction worked with an inmate to set up Moniz and entrap him into delivering contraband to the inmate on Feb. 11, 2009. Moniz was 20 at the time with just over a year of experience in the House of Correction. Read more: http://www.heraldnews.com/news/x1843773422/Jury-finds-correctional-officer-from-Fall-River-not-guilty-in-drug-case#ixzz24Sd5buBl
