Two detention workers gave bondsman private inmate info to boost his business, BSO says
.jpg "Two Broward Sheriff’s Office employees, Erika Ragin, left, and Marie Gary, right, were arrested after detectives say they gave a bondsman private inmate information that allowed him to get more business.")
After an inmate would be processed at Broward Sheriff’s Office detention center, two employees would occasionally give a bail bondsman private information in exchange for food and cash. Now, the trio are facing their own bond to get out of jail.
On Wednesday morning, detectives arrested BSO Detention employees Erika Ragin, 48, and Marie Gary, 54, along with James Mitchell Jones, a 43-year-old bail bondsman.
“It is unthinkable to me that a pair of trusted public servants would sell out their careers for any reason, let alone a few measly bucks,” Sheriff Gregory Tony said in a statement.
Ragin and Gary were charged with unlawful compensation or reward for official behavior; offenses against users of computers, computer systems or computer network; and employee in a jail receiving a benefit of a bond.
Jones is facing charges including two counts each of bribing a public servant; offenses against users of computers, computer systems or computer network; and employee in a jail receiving a benefit of a bond.
Lawyer information for Ragin, Gary and Jones was not available Wednesday night. A call to Jones’ office went straight to voicemail. A message was not returned.
Ragin and Gary are civilian employees, not sworn officers, who’ve worked for BSO for more than two decades, the department said. The pair were inmate asset specialists, which means they would help with the processing of inmates and intake. They’ve been suspended without pay.
In early 2019, the FBI told BSO’s Public Corruption Unit about an anonymous tip that claimed a BSO employee was giving confidential jail inmate information to Jones, who owns a Fort Lauderdale bond company called Out On Bail, 23 NW Seventh Ave.
Some online reviews for his bond company were negative, with one reviewer stating Jones posted a bond without permission.
“James is a fraud. He posted my brother’s bond without anyone asking or contacting him, let alone paying him. Then when we told him we had a bondsman he became upset and threw my brother back in jail,” the reviewer wrote. “Good luck, run, run, run from James Jones!”
BSO’s investigation found that Ragin and Gary would access inmates’ emergency contact information and give it to Jones. He would then use it to solicit business from inmates’ emergency contacts, deputies said. According to the Florida Department of Financial Services, Jones has an active license as a bond agent.
In exchange for this confidential information, Jones would occasionally give Ragin and Gary food or small amounts of cash. The value of the kickbacks was not immediately known.
Arrest records show these exchanges took place between March and July 2019.
“The actions of these two employees are truly despicable and are not a reflection on the valiant and commendable work done by the vast majority of BSO employees who serve and protect this community each day,” Tony said.
This story was originally published February 23, 2022 at 7:42 PM.
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