TRENTON — An inmate at Northern State Prison has been sentenced to seven more years for scheming with a corrections officer to smuggle heroin and cell phones into the Newark facility, according to the Attorney General’s Office. The prisoner, Angel Vasquez, 54, a former inmate at the prison who has since been moved to South Woods State Prison, will...
File photo of the South Woods State Prison.TRENTON — An inmate at Northern State Prison has been sentenced to seven more years for scheming with a corrections officer to smuggle heroin and cell phones into the Newark facility, according to the Attorney General’s Office.
The prisoner, Angel Vasquez, 54, a former inmate at the prison who has since been moved to South Woods State Prison, will have the time tacked onto a 50-year sentence for manslaughter that he received in 1994, the office said in a news release after Monday’s sentencing.
Vasquez admitted in June that he enlisted a former senior correction officer, Luis S. Roman, to smuggle heroin and cell phones into the prison to sell to other inmates, the release said. He pleaded guilty to racketeering.
Vasquez’s brother, Justiniano Vasquez, 61, of the Bronx, N.Y., admitted on Monday he provided the money for the scheme, the Attorney General’s Office said. He also pleaded guilty to racketeering and is scheduled to be sentenced Sept. 26.
Earlier this year, Roman, 47, of Avenel, pleaded guilty to racketeering and official misconduct, the Attorney General’s office said, adding that the state will recommend 14 years in prison at his sentencing scheduled for Oct. 3.
Last year, Ann Marie Roman, 37, of Keasbey, who now is divorced from Luis Roman, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit bribery, the office said. She admitted that at her husband’s direction she received thousands of dollars through wire transfers as payment for the smuggled goods.
Charges are pending against a second inmate, Willie Wade, 47, the office said. Wade and Angel Vasquez allegedly employed a number of other inmates to seek out customers.
Eighteen others have been charged with racketeering in connection with the scheme, and 15 of them have pleaded guilty, said Peter Aseltine, a spokesman for the Attorney General. In addition, 16 inmates accused of buying phones have pleaded guilty, Aseltine said.
Previous Coverage:
• N.J. corrections officer is accused in contraband smuggling network
• Indictments to be announced against people accused of smuggling phones, drugs into N.J. prison
• Jail inmate admits smuggling cell phone into N.J. prison in Newark