DICKINSON, NY — An incarcerated man is facing multiple felony charges after investigators found fentanyl, heroin and marijuana in his cell at the Broome County Correctional Facility.
Jean C. Benitez-Melendez, 29, of Syracuse, was charged April 29 following a search of his living quarters by the Broome County Sheriff’s Corrections Investigation Unit.
Benitez-Melendez had been transferred to the facility one day earlier by U.S. Marshals on a federal probation violation.
Investigators acting on intelligence about possible contraband found a bundle of substances wrapped in plastic on Benitez-Melendez’s person, according to the sheriff’s office.
The bundle contained a green leafy substance that tested positive for marijuana, a pink powdery substance that tested positive for heroin, and a white powdery substance that tested positive for fentanyl.
A hand-rolled cigarette containing marijuana was also found in an air vent in his living quarters.
Benitez-Melendez was charged with two counts of promoting prison contraband in the first degree, both class D felonies, and tampering with physical evidence, a class E felony.
He also faces two counts of promoting prison contraband in the second degree, two counts of criminal possession of a controlled substance in the seventh degree, and obstruction of governmental administration in the second degree, all class A misdemeanors.
Benitez-Melendez was arraigned at Central Arraignment Part.
