Former Federal Correctional Officer, Inmate Sentenced for Contraband Smuggling Conspiracy

Memphis, TN – A former federal correctional officer and an inmate have both been sentenced for attempting to smuggle marijuana into a federal prison. Edward L. Stanton III, U.S. Attorney for the Western District of Tennessee, announced the sentences today.

According to the indictment, Keair Kemp, 33, of Horn Lake, Mississippi, was employed as a correctional officer at Federal Correctional Institution (FCI) Memphis. Travonte Johnson, 34, of Millington, Tennessee, was an inmate at FCI Memphis.

Between mid-2015 and August 2015, Kemp and Johnson developed a scheme to smuggle marijuana into FCI Memphis. In exchange for cash, Kemp agreed to unlawfully carry marijuana into the prison and deliver it to Johnson, thus violating his official duties as a correctional officer.

In December 2015, Kemp pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Sheryl H. Lipman to one count of accepting a bribe in return for smuggling marijuana into a federal prison.

In January 2016, Johnson pleaded guilty to one count of offering a bribe to a public official to smuggle marijuana into a federal correctional institution.

On Friday, April 8, 2016, Kemp was sentenced by Judge Lipman to 12 months and one day imprisonment.

On Monday, April 11, 2016, Johnson was sentenced by Judge Lipman to 30 months imprisonment.

This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, U.S. Department of Justice Office of Inspector General, and the Federal Bureau of Prisons.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Mark Erskine prosecuted this case on the government’s behalf.