A long-running contraband pipeline inside San Quentin Rehabilitation Center has come to a head, after a former prison janitor admitted in federal court that he smuggled meth to inmates in a scheme that authorities say ran for years and pulled in six-figure profits. The case first grabbed attention when investigators cracked open what looked like an ordinary peanut butter jar during an August 2024 search and, according to prosecutors, found it stuffed with drugs.
Keith Reindeer Randle, 56, of Vallejo, pleaded guilty yesterday in U.S. District Court to possession with intent to distribute more than 300 grams of methamphetamine, according to the San Francisco Chronicle. Prosecutors told the outlet that Randle used his job as a California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation janitor to move meth, cannabis and tobacco into San Quentin between January 2019 and August 2024, allegedly charging about $1,000 per item and collecting more than $100,000 in proceeds. The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of California is prosecuting the case.
How investigators say he operated
Investigators stopped Randle on Aug. 15, 2024, and found a peanut butter jar that prosecutors say had been hollowed out, painted brown and sealed to look untouched. Inside, agents reported discovering roughly 301 grams of meth and cannabis. The money trail, outlined in court records reviewed by Bay Area News Group, shows Randle allegedly received at least $31,000 through PayPal between January 2019 and April 2020, while an inmate’s wife sent about $40,926 through Cash App between July 2021 and August 2022. Prosecutors say that over time, he shifted from taking payments directly from inmates to routing money through associates and family members in an effort to stay off the radar.
Evidence, charges and the court file
Court filings list the matter as United States v. Randle, case No. 3:24-mj-71438 in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California, according to Leagle. Prosecutors say federal agents seized more than $55,000 in cash from two residences tied to Randle during the investigation, money he later admitted came from the smuggling scheme, according to the San Francisco Chronicle. With his guilty plea to possession with intent to distribute over 300 grams of meth, the case now moves toward sentencing.
What Randle faces
The federal possession-with-intent charge tied to that quantity of meth carries serious potential penalties. Earlier reporting noted that Randle could face up to 20 years in prison and fines of up to $1 million. Prosecutors could also seek asset forfeiture connected to the alleged proceeds of the operation, and no sentencing date has yet been made public, according to reporting and court records from Bay Area News Group.
Local fallout
Randle’s guilty plea lands amid broader federal scrutiny of staff conduct inside California prisons, with separate recent indictments and investigations zeroing in on alleged smuggling operations and planted contraband. Those cases highlight persistent problems with illegal goods flowing into state facilities and a growing federal focus on cutting off supply lines behind bars, according to Corrections1.
