Female correctional officer charged with drug possession

A female correctional officer who was caught with drugs in her private part has been officially charged and is expected to make her first court appearance today.

Lydia Charlery of La Pointe, Mon Repos was found with hashish – a product of marijuana – tightly wrapped in a clear plastic bag and further concealed in foil paper in her possession on Sunday, April 12.

The entire package reportedly weighed about 25 grams and was hidden in a sanitary pad worn by the prison officer, a mother of three.

The female correctional officer, who is attached to the Bordelais Correctional Facility (BCF), was charged with drug possession and another charge. It is unclear what the other charge is, at this time.

Inspector Burton Deterville, head of the Drug Unit, had told St. Lucia News Online (SNO) initially the officer refused to be searched or spread her legs.

She instead requested to be taken to Dennery Hospital, where a doctor removed the drugs from her private part area. Deterville said a female officer accompanied the prison officer to the hospital.

Deterville said all prison officers are subjected to a routine search when they arrive at work. He said female prison officers are usually “frisked” but on this occasion the officer received a “body cavity search” based on intelligence received.

“We don’t do body cavity searches unless there is a reason to or we received intelligence,” the Drug Unit chief pointed out.

Other reliable sources have told SNO that prison officials have long suspected the prison officer of drug smuggling.

“We knew about her activities but we never caught her, until today,” the source said. “She is known to the police. Her house has been searched several times.”

It is alleged that her boyfriend is an ex convict who was arrested for firearm possession in Martinique.