2 held in bid to smuggle marijuana into jail

9/6/2013

Two Toledo men are accused of trying to sneak marijuana into the Lucas County jail by hiding the drug in a pair of gym shorts.

Brian Cutlip, 24, of 5405 Heatherdowns Blvd. and Michael Cade, 37, of 1627 Copley Dr. are each charged with illegal conveyance of weapons or prohibited items into a detention facility, and possessing criminal tools.

The pair were arraigned Thursday in Toledo Municipal Court. Mr. Cade was ordered to be held in lieu of $10,000 bond; Mr. Cutlip was released on his own recognizance.

Sgt. Joe Gorney of the sheriff’s office said the suspects were bringing clothing to an inmate Wednesday when deputies inspecting it found marijuana in the drawstring area of a pair of gym shorts.

“We’re not talking about brain surgeons here,” the sergeant said. “They’ll bring in the shorts and you can smell marijuana from a mile away. They try to cover it up with perfume and that’s the first giveaway.”

The sergeant said it does not appear any officers were involved in the attempt.

Hiding drugs in clothing is nothing new, the sergeant said.

To cut down on contraband finding its way into the jail, Sheriff John Tharp ordered that inmates could no longer receive shoes from visitors.

The no-shoes policy was enacted at least a month ago because people were hollowing out the soles and hiding drugs inside, Sergeant Gorney said.