Pima County jail officer arrested for contraband, narcotics
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PCSDMartin Lopez
A corrections officer at the Pima County jail was arrested last week for transportation of narcotics and promoting prison contraband, authorities said Monday afternoon.
CO Martin Lopez, 27, was arrested just after 8 p.m. Wednesday, a Pima County Sheriff's Department spokesman said.
Lopez was arrested after a week-long investigation that started with a tip to the PCSD Office of Professional Standards, said Deputy James Allerton.
Lopez had been a CO for about 11 months, and was still in his probationary period, Allerton said.
PCSD detectives, along with the canine unit, air unit and specialized patrol units took part in the investigation and arrest, Allerton said.
Few details about the case were released. The type of narcotics and number of times Lopez may have helped smuggle drugs into the jail were not made public.
Allerton emphasized that "no high-ranking member of the Pima County Sheriff's Department was arrested or implicated in this case."
Three other probationary COs were recently dismissed because of their performance, but they were not connected with the Lopez case, said Allerton, who wanted to "dispel further rumors" about those former employees.
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