STARKE, Fla. (AP) - Authorities in north Florida say more than 50 people, including 10 former corrections officers, participated in a painkiller distribution ring that involved sneaking the drugs into Florida State Prison.
The Bradford County Sheriff's Office said in a news release Tuesday that an 11-month operation culminated with 49 arrest warrants. Two corrections officers were previously arrested in June.
Officials say the investigation uncovered an illegal pill network supplied primarily by four large-scale sources in Polk, Alachua and Duval counties. They say suppliers would wholesale the pills to one former corrections officer, who would then distribute the pills to nine other Department of Corrections employees and dozens of others in the community.
Florida Department of Corrections Secretary Julie Jones released a statement saying all prison employees involved had been terminated.
(Copyright 2015 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.)
