Ex-prison guard sentenced for accepting bribes, giving inmates tobacco

A former guard at the U.S. Penitentiary in Atlanta was sentenced to one year and a day in prison exactly three months after he pleaded guilty to accepting bribes in exchange for smuggling tobacco for inmates.

Melvin Thomas, 40, of Rocky Mount, N.C., must also spend two years on supervised release following his prison stint, the U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of Georgia said in a news release Tuesday.

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“Thomas reneged on his oath of office by violating the laws he pledged to uphold,” U.S. Attorney Byung J. “BJay” Pak said. “This type of conduct will not be tolerated, and the defendant will now be held accountable for his betrayal of the public trust, as well as his disloyalty to his fellow correctional officers.”

Between July 2009 and April 2017, Thomas accepted payments from an inmate in exchange for smuggling tobacco into the prison. The inmate paid Thomas $3,500 for the tobacco.

Thomas was charged Feb. 14 with bribery of a public official. He pleaded guilty April 10.

As part of his sentencing, Thomas was also ordered to pay a $3,500 fine.