WICHITA, Kan. (KSNW) — The former deputy assigned to a Sedgwick County Jail pod with inmates who smuggled contraband made his first appearance in court on Friday.
Dustin Burnett, 22, is charged with two counts of official misconduct; destroy/tamper/conceal felony evidence.
Sheriff Jeff Easter said on Thursday in a news conference Burnett saw inmates remove a pipe to break a window, and use a sheet to get the contraband, but did not stop it or tell anyone. The sheriff says the former deputy did not give the whole story when investigators confronted him.
The contraband, Easter said, was two cellphones and marijuana. Investigators learned there were supposed to be three more drops that day, with the intention of getting a handgun into the jail. An inmate informed a sergeant before that could happen, though.
This information prompted an investigation by 169 deputies both on the commission and detention sides to search the 1,226-bed facility.
Through the investigation, deputies uncovered a handcuff key wrapped in tape, K-2, two shanks, and additional metal items that could be made into shanks. They also found fentanyl pills and a butane lighter.
The sheriff said that they have recently seized at least four other shanks made of metal, not plastic.
According to the Sedgwick County Jail inmate search, Burnett is still in the Sedgwick County Jail as of 5:45 p.m. on Friday.
An investigation is ongoing. Burnett is scheduled to appear in court next on Aug. 1. His bond is set for $150,000.
