RALEIGH
Two former prison guards that worked at Polk Correctional Institution were named in a four-count indictment handed down this month by a federal grand jury, federal officials announced Monday.
Gregory Dustin Gouldman, 31 and Jason Dean, 29, each were indicted with one count of Extortion Under Color of Official Right. Additionally, Dean was charged with one count of making a False Statement to the Federal Bureau of Investigation, and one count of lying before a federal Grand Jury.
U.S. Attorney Thomas Walker stated, “Corruption by correction officers undermines the criminal justice system and puts the general public at risk. We will always prosecute these kinds of cases to maintain the integrity of our system.”
Gouldman was employed as a Correctional Officer at Polk from 2005, through May of 2015.
From 2012, through September of 2014, Gouldman held the position of Sergeant and worked as a supervisor in Polk’s “high security maximum control unit” or HCON. The HCON unit was opened in 1998 to serve as North Carolina’s supermax prison for “the state’s most violent and assaultive offenders.”
The indictment alleges that Gouldman engaged in a scheme with a number of prisoners held in HCON under which he smuggled tobacco, marijuana, cellular telephones, and packages of AA batteries to inmates in exchange for cash. The cellular telephones were used by the inmates to communicate with persons outside of prison.
It is further alleged that, after being transferred out of HCON in September of 2014, Gouldman continued to smuggle contraband into Polk for at least one additional inmate.
Dean is alleged to have misused his position as a Correction Officer to extort things of value from inmates. Dean is also alleged to have lied as to a material fact during an interview with FBI Agents and to have committed perjury while testifying before a federal Grand Jury.
The U.S. Attorney’s Office and FBI’s investigation into Polk was prompted by the circumstances relating to the kidnapping conspiracy alleged to have been orchestrated by defendant Kelvin Melton through the use of a cellular telephone in his cell in HCON.
“These men put many lives at risk for their own profit. They were entrusted with the responsibility of ensuring that North Carolina’s convicted criminals serve their sentences. Instead, this type of conduct made it possible for a dangerous gang member to reach outside of prison walls which lead to the kidnapping of Mr. Frank Janssen. The FBI will keep pursuing this case and will not stop until everyone who played a role in this ruthless crime is held accountable,” said John Strong, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI.
Polk is operated under the purview of the North Carolina Department of Public Safety.
DPS Secretary Frank L. Perry said: “The department has participated in and cooperated with this investigation and we strongly support this prosecution in this very serious case to the fullest extent of the law. DPS has so many professional and dedicated employees who serve the state in this very challenging and dangerous environment and it is truly regrettable when a corrupt staff member puts their co-workers and the public at risk.”
If convicted of Extortion Under Color of Official Rights both defendants face up 20 years in prison and a fine of $250,000.
In addition, Dean faces up to five years’ imprisonment if convicted of making a False Statement and a fine of $250,000 and five years’ imprisonment if convicted of Perjury and a fine of $250,000.
The defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty.