SOUTHAMPTON COUNTY, Va. (WRIC) — An investigation is underway after a man with a warrant out for his arrest was taken into custody after being found outside of a Virginia state prison carrying a diaper filled with contraband items.
The Virginia Department of Corrections said the unidentified man was first spotted by roving patrol staff at Deerfield Correctional Center around 4:45 p.m. on Sunday, Oct. 1. The man was reportedly seen walking the wood line along the perimeter road of the facility, which is an unauthorized area.
A second patrol was called, and the man was later stopped by VADOC staff and the members of the Southampton County Sheriff’s Office. It was then that officers found the man carrying a diaper — but it wasn’t dirty in the traditional sense. The diaper was filled with contraband.
The VADOC reported the diaper concealed two lighters and a cell phone – items prohibited in prison.
“Cell phones, lighters, drugs and other forms of contraband pose a serious risk to our department’s mission of providing safe and effective incarceration,” said VADOC Director Chadwick Dotson. “I thank our Security Staff members for their dedication and efforts in this case and the Southampton County Sheriff’s Office for their support.”
The man was taken into custody when officers learned there was a warrant out for his arrest related to probation violations.
The Virginia Department of Corrections says the incident remains under investigation and will release nothing further until the investigation has been completed.
