An inmate arriving at the Fulton County jail had knives and a loaded gun on him during intake, officials said.
No one took the items from James Blake before Fulton County Sheriff’s detention Officer Darren Green searched him in the intake area, Channel 2 Action News reported.
Blake also had a gun permit on him.
“I was concerned about the safety of the officer who brought him in,” Green told the news station.
Blake was arrested on burglary and other charges after a brief foot chase, Atlanta police Maj. Scott Kreher said.
While officers did a great job of catching Blake, they could have done a better job of searching him, Kreher told Channel 2.
“Internal affairs was called immediately,” he said.
In recent months, intake officers have confiscated drugs and other dangerous items from inmates.
Jail Maj. Kenneth Walker told Channel 2 that if the intake area is compromised, the whole jail is compromised.
But as far as whether search procedures need to be revisited, Kreher said he thought that might be premature.
“I think we need to look at the circumstances of the case individually and see where the breakdown was,” he said.
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