An NYC correction officer was arrested for packing nearly 62 grams of K2 on Wednesday, after a drug-sniffing dog singled him out during a shift change on Rikers Island.
Department of Investigation officials searched Officer Mohammed Sufian, 25, and found that he had packed 61.6 grams of the inexpensive and hallucinatory potpourri into his socks before heading into work.
According to the Bronx DA's office, Officer Sufian was stopped during the 3:00 p.m. shift change at the Anna M. Kross Center on Wednesday, by a DOI chocolate Labrador Retriever named Gunner (yes, Gunner). Prosecutors alleged that Sufian had been paid $500 the night before his arrest, and was expecting a second payout on delivery. The DOI proceeded to search Sufian's home, and found four packages of K2 packed in black electrical tape weighing 162 grams, plus 32 grams of tobacco—all allegedly intended for Rikers.
Sufian had been employed by the DOC since October 2014 at the time of his arrest, with an annual salary of $39,755. He has been suspended from his post and charged with receiving bribery and promoting prison contraband. Combined, his charges bear a maximum sentence of 15 years.
The DOI has arrested 25 DOC staff members since 2014, many on contraband charges.
K2 was officially criminalized in NYC last October, following months of intensifying crackdowns on the cheap over-the-counter drug. Selling or manufacturing K2 was previously only considered a health code violation, carrying a $250 fine. Now, offenders are punishable by up to $5,000 in fines and a year in prison.
Last summer, five psychiatric patients on Wards Island were hospitalized after smoking the stuff, which has been known to cause seizures.
