Former Hays officer pleads guilty to meth, cocaine smuggling charges

♦ Voltaire Pierre is scheduled to be sentenced on Jan. 14.

A now former corrections officer at Hays State Prison pleaded guilty to smuggling meth and cocaine as well as other drugs into the prison.

On Oct. 17, Voltaire Peter Pierre, 39, of Norcross, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute methamphetamine, crack cocaine, and marijuana and possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine on premises where a minor resides.

He was released on his own recognizance until sentencing on Jan. 14, at 10 a.m.

“As a former corrections officer, Pierre violated his oath to uphold the law, betrayed the community, and endangered his fellow officers and inmates,” said U.S. Attorney Byung J. “Bjay” Pak in a press release. “We will continue working with our federal and state law enforcement partners to ferret out and remove corrupt officials and to combat the flow of drugs and other contraband into our prisons.”

According to a U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia press release and court records:

Pierre begin smuggling the drugs into Hays State

Prison, a high security facility in Trion, in June 2018 and continued until his arrest on Oct. 1, 2018.

Pierre smuggled methamphetamine, crack cocaine, marijuana and tobacco into the prison and received payment via a mobile app. He’d coordinate the drug drop-offs at motels and at his family’s home. He’d then smuggle them into the prison in “soup containers and other seemingly innocuous items.”

Officials said the drugs were then delivered, in many cases to members of the Bloods street gang, Pak stated in the release.

Because Pierre stored the drugs at his family home before smuggling them into the prison, he also pleaded guilty to possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine on premises where a minor resides.

The Federal Bureau of Investigation is investigating this case in coordination with the Georgia Department of Corrections.

“The Georgia Department of Corrections maintains a zero tolerance policy for individuals who choose to ignore their oath and jeopardize our non-negotiable mission of public safety. We appreciate the support of our Federal partners in our efforts to see that justice is served on this former officer,” said GDC Commissioner Timothy C. Ward in the release.