Pubdate: Fri, 30 July 1999 Source: Deseret News (UT) Copyright: 1999 Deseret News Publishing Corp. Contact: http://www.desnews.com/ Author: Amy Joi Bryson, Deseret News staff writer OFFICERS RAID PRISON UNITS FOR DRUGS Small Amounts Found; More Sweeps Planned Close to 200 law enforcement officers swept through a housing unit at the Utah State Prison Wednesday night, coming up with a few drugs, a little money and a weapon. Department of Corrections spokesman Jack Ford said the 11 p.m. raid at Promontory is the first in a series of planned "inspections" that will be done throughout the year to deter drug use in the prison. Promontory, which is a privately run minimum-security facility operated by MTC of Ogden, was chosen first because so much of its population is allowed off-site, Ford said. The 400-bed unit is for those inmates who are "halfway" out and are close to a parole date. It also serves as a "halfway" back unit for those parolees who violate terms of their supervision. Because residents are allowed off-site to go to work and have home visits on the weekends, the likelihood of drugs being smuggled in increases, Ford said. "This was the result of a lot of letters that came in, inmates who say they didn't want to go there because of the drugs and investigations by our own law enforcement bureau," Ford said. The raid produced minimal amounts of meth, cocaine and marijuana, Ford said, and a homemade knife whose owner they couldn't identify. Four Promontory residents were pulled from the facility and returned to the regular prison population because of prohibited items found in their possession, he said. Ford said the operation has been in the planning stages for about two weeks and involved prison SWAT officers, 50 agents with Salt Lake's Adult Probation and Parole, as well as agents from Davis and We-ber counties. K-9 units from Utah County were also used, Ford said. "We need a large number of people who divide up into teams so they can get into the facility quickly. One, we wanted to control any flushing. If they know we are coming, it is going to go down the toilet. We have to go in there quickly to cover all the toilets." The raid is an extension of the prison's ongoing efforts to deter drug use, supplementing its regular spot checks, Ford said. "We run 1,200 random urine tests a month inside the system," he said. Officers also cordon off sections each day for regular sweeps. "They're done on a regular basis and are pretty arbitrary." Ford said this is the largest operation since one that took place nearly three years ago. That, too, was at Promontory. Authorities plan to hit all the housing units. "I think this sends a message. We are going to continue to do this because we will not tolerate using drugs in prison." - --- MAP posted-by: Thunder