CAIRO — A Grady County Jail detention officer was arrested and lost her job after allegedly smuggling contraband into the Grady jail, according to officials. 

Audrey Latrell Jones, 35, of Camilla, was arrested following a three-month investigation by the Grady County Sheriff’s Office. The Georgia Bureau of Investigation assisted with the investigation. 

Jail inmates alerted Grady Sheriff Harry Young about Jones’ activity. 

“I got a tip from several of them,” he said.

The investigation found that Jones brought “several different things,” such as electronic cigarettes and cell phones into the Grady County Jail, Young said. 

“Just one thing’s enough,” the sheriff said. 

Prior to Jones smuggling various items into the county jail, Young said, she would contact inmates’ family members or friends for payment and “they would pay her on the outside.”

A Grady County Jail detention officer for three years, Jones was arrested on Aug. 3 and charged with bribery, items prohibited by inmates, and violation of oath of office. 

“Violation of oath of office is very serious,” Young noted. 

Jones was terminated following the arrest. 

Young commended the Grady Sheriff’s Office investigators and GBI for the probe, also pointing out if similar instances are suspected in the Grady County Sheriff’s Office, an investigation will be conducted. 

“They’re going to get caught,” he said. 

Reporter Jordan Barela can be reached at (229) 226-2400, ext. 1826.