A former correctional officer at the Federal Detention Center in Philadelphia has been sentenced to probation and home detention for smuggling mobile phones into the correctional facility. Lee E. Moore, Jr., aged 36, from Sicklerville, New Jersey, was given a sentence on Thursday that included three years of probation with six months of home confinement, along with a $5,000 fine. The sentence was handed down by United States Magistrate Judge Scott W. Reid, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office, Eastern District of Pennsylvania.
During his tenure from August 2016 to June 2023 as a correctional officer, Moore was found to have provided inmates with contraband phones in exchange for payments. In the span of May to June 2020, Moore engaged in illegal activity, which involved an inmate's wife, and was also discovered to have approached another inmate to offer to smuggle in additional contraband, as reported by the U.S. Attorney's Office.
U.S. Attorney Jacqueline C. Romero spoke to the severity of Moore's actions, stating, "Correctional officers have a tough enough job without having to deal with inmates who have access to smuggled contraband." She further emphasized the risks involved, pointing out that Moore "put his fellow COs and the public at risk by smuggling cell phones into the FDC for a price." Her statement highlighted the consequences that Moore is now facing, which extend beyond his incarceration terms to include a federal conviction on his record.
Wayne A. Jacobs, the Special Agent in Charge of FBI Philadelphia, discussed the broader implications of such misconduct within the corrections system, asserting that "when a corrections officer chooses greed over integrity, it undermines the hard work and dedication their colleagues put forward every day to ensure a safe environment inside our detention centers." His statement, made by the U.S. Attorney's Office, reflects a commitment to hold accountable those who abuse their positions of trust. The FBI, alongside the Department of Justice’s Office of Inspector General and the Federal Detention Center itself, conducted the investigation that led to Moore's prosecution by Assistant United States Attorney Vineet Gauri.
