Chesco woman admits carrying drugs into Graterford prison
NORRISTOWN >> A West Chester woman who carried drugs with her while she was a visitor at the former State Correctional Institution at Graterford in Skippack is now a resident of a state prison.
Erica Ann Colombo, 24, of the 1000 block of Valley Drive, was sentenced in Montgomery County Court to 21-to-48-months in the State Correctional Institution at Muncy after she pleaded guilty to a charge of contraband/controlled substance in connection with a September 2017 incident at the former Graterford prison.
The sentence was imposed by Judge Thomas C. Branca as part of a plea agreement.
Branca said Colombo is eligible for the state Department of Corrections’ Recidivism Risk Reduction Incentive program.
The program, commonly referred to as “Triple R-I,” allows eligible non-violent offenders to receive reductions of their minimum state prison sentences if they successfully complete all required treatment and maintain good-conduct records in prison. Prisoners can be released upon completing the program only if officials are satisfied that the offenders pose no risks to public safety.
Colombo can reduce her minimum sentence to 15 months and 22 days if she successfully completes the prison program, according to court documents.
The investigation of Colombo began about 10:55 a.m. Sept. 12, 2017, when state police at Skippack were dispatched to the former Graterford facility off Route 29 for a report of a woman in the visiting area with a controlled substance.
Prison officials said Colombo proceeded through the metal detector in the visitor admission area when they noticed something awry.
“The metal detector was then set off by Colombo and when searching Colombo a packet of Suboxone was found by SCI Graterford personnel,” state police Trooper Isaiah Slonaker alleged in the arrest affidavit.
Suboxone is a prescription medication used to treat those dependent on opioid drugs.
Graterford staff subsequently obtained permission from Colombo to search her vehicle, which was parked on the prison’s visitor lot, according to the arrest affidavit. Inside the vehicle, authorities found several medical needles and numerous packets of suspected heroin labeled “Knockout,” “Gorilla” or “Fast and Furious,” according to the criminal complaint.
“Through my past training and experiences the substances found inside the clear plastic bags were identified as heroin,” Slonaker alleged.
After Colombo was placed under arrest she was searched by police and was found to possess “another packet of heroin” and an empty, clear bag, according to court documents.
Court documents do not reveal who Colombo went to visit at the prison.
Other charges of possession of heroin, possession of Suboxone and possession of drug paraphernalia were dismissed against Colombo as part of the plea agreement.