News

Former Federal Prison Guard Sentenced to Eight Years for Sexual Abuse in California Facility

Published

3 weeks ago

November 17, 2023

darryl

A former guard at the Federal Correctional Institution in Dublin, California, where a “culture of sexual abuse of female inmates” was reported, has been sentenced to eight years in prison, according to federal prosecutors.

Andrew Jones, 36, from Clovis, was convicted of sexually abusing multiple female inmates at FCI Dublin, as part of a broader case involving eight correctional officers from the facility. Four of these officers, including Jones, have been sentenced, with Jones receiving the longest sentence to date.

The U.S. attorney’s office for the Northern District of California revealed that Jones, a former Army correctional officer at Guantanamo Bay, pleaded guilty to sexually abusing three inmates. His offenses, which included six counts of sexual abuse of a ward and one count of false statements to investigators, occurred between July 2020 and June 2021 when Jones was overseeing inmates at the prison’s food services department.

Inspector General Michael Horowitz commented on the case, stating, “Jones participated in a culture of sexual abuse of female inmates at FCI Dublin that included the Warden, the Chaplain, and other employees, and he, like them, has now been held to account for his heinous acts.”

While Jones’s defense attorneys argued that he had personal trauma and developed a dependency on alcohol, they emphasized that the abusive behavior occurred over only one year out of his eight-year tenure at FCI Dublin. Prosecutors, on the other hand, contended that Jones had threatened women with violence, groomed them for sexual abuse, and abused the authority granted by the federal government to intimidate and victimize them.

sexual abuse

You can also read: Road Rage Arrest: Motorist Fires BB Gun, Poses as FBI with Fake Badge

U.S. Deputy Attorney General Lisa Monaco expressed the Justice Department’s commitment to addressing such misconduct within the Federal Bureau of Prisons, calling the sexual abuse at FCI Dublin “disgraceful and tragic.”