A Connecticut woman has admitted to providing contraband to an inmate at a federal prison in Pennsylvania, according to federal authorities.
Samantha Ellis, 34, of Windsor, pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Sarala V. Nagala in Hartford, according to Vanessa Roberts Avery, U.S. Attorney for Connecticut.
Authorities, citing court documents and statements made in court, said Tyshawn McDade was serving a prison term at the U.S. Penitentiary in Allenwood, Pennsylvania and in November, 2022, Ellis “smuggled a small blue balloon containing “approximately 20 packaged strips of Suboxone Sublingual Film, which is a Schedule III controlled substance and narcotic,” into USP Allenwood’s visiting room” and allegedly provided the contraband to McDade.
Authorities allege McDade swallowed the balloon, but a corrections officer noticed what occurred and ended the visit, and the exchange was captured on video.
A federal grand jury in Pennsylvania, indicted McDade and Ellis in September 2023, then the case against Ellis was transferred from the Middle District of Pennsylvania to Connecticut.
Nagala scheduled sentencing for Sept. 3, and Ellis faces up to 20 years in prison. Ellis is free on a $10,000 bond pending sentencing, authorities said.
McDade’s case is ongoing, authorities said.
The case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Federal Bureau of Prisons.
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