Two Oklahoma County Detention Center Officers Arrested

OKLAHOMA CITY (KFOR) — Two men once tasked with keeping an eye on inmates at the Oklahoma County Jail are now behind bars.

Two former Oklahoma County Jail guards were arrested Wednesday for bringing contraband into the prison.

Brandi Garner, director of the Oklahoma County Detention Center, brought this to the attention of prison officials back in June, explaining that since she took over last year, they have learned that gang members are trying to infiltrate prison staff.

Kaylyn Crawford and Xzavier Nicholson are both former officers of the Oklahoma County Detention Center. They were arrested for bringing contraband into the jail.

“We have determined that some individuals are trying to get hired and they certainly have gang ties within the Department of Corrections and they are trying to continue that criminal activity within our walls,” Garner said.

The two arrests made on Wednesday are part of an ongoing investigation. It is not clear at this time whether they are gang-related.

In her report two months ago, Garner said the prison receives dozens of applications for open positions.

The challenge lies in filling the staff positions with the right personnel.

“We have two that are still in the past, four that have been hired and 21 of them have been rejected based on their criminal history,” Garner said.

According to Garner, the prison has improved background checks so they can detect early on whether applicants are gang members.

“Our background checkers and all of our staff do a great job of identifying these individuals early on so we can prevent problems down the road,” Garner said.

A press conference is planned shortly in collaboration with the Public Prosecution Service to discuss the facts of the case.