A corrections officer who had sex with an inmate at the federal prison in Milan brought him loose tobacco pouches to sell and a gold necklace, according to a plea agreement filed Thursday in U.S. District Court.
Cara Wozniak, 33, pleaded guilty to one count each of sexual abuse of a ward and providing contraband in prison. She faces a statutory maximum sentence of up to 15 years in prison on the sexual abuse charge and up to six months on the contraband offense, according to the plea agreement.
She was indicted in May and is to be sentenced Feb. 5.
“Corrections Officers are entrusted with the critical responsibility of managing the security of our federal prisons. Ms. Wozniak’s conduct in this case was an abuse of that trust and created a security risk for everyone at the institution. Sexual contact between inmates and Corrections Officers is never acceptable, nor is the smuggling of contraband into prison,” U.S. Attorney Dawn Ison said in a news release Thursday announcing the plea.
Wozniak’s attorney, Michael Rataj, had no comment Thursday.
As part of the plea agreement, Wozniak agreed not to seek employment with the federal Bureau of Prisons again.
More:Ex-Warren cop who assaulted city lockup detainee wanted him to apologize
She became a corrections officer at the Federal Correctional Institution in Milan in November 2022, and received training that sexual interaction between guards and inmates and smuggling in contraband are prohibited. The facility is a low-security prison that houses male offenders.
Wozniak is accused of engaging in sexual intercourse with an inmate in the prison twice last year, once in September and again in October, according to the plea agreement.
Several times last year, Wozniak also bought packages of loose tobacco from a smoke shop in Milan and smuggled them into the prison for the inmate. He wanted to sell the tobacco in prison to make money and offered to pay her for the contraband she brought in to him, according to the agreement.
In September, she bought a gold necklace that she secretly brought into the prison and gave to the inmate. The necklace and tobacco are prohibited items in the prison and are considered contraband.
Contact Christina Hall: chall@freepress.com. Follow her on Twitter: @challreporter.
Support local journalism. Subscribe to the Free Press.
Submit a letter to the editor at freep.com/letters.
This post was originally published on this site be sure to check out more of their content.
