A Smith County detention officer has been arrested for delivering contraband to inmates at the Smith County Low Risk Facility.
Sheriff Larry Smith said on Friday morning around 11, 24-year-old Keenon Daniels Olison, Jr. was arrested by the Smith County Sheriff's Office. The investigation into Olison has been going on for the past six weeks when they received a tip that he was smuggling controlled substances into the low risk facility.
Sheriff Smith placed Olison under surveillance after information was received by the Special Services Unit showing that the officer was responsible for smuggling illegal contraband and controlled substances into the facility.
"We will not move a problem, we will not transfer a problem. We will not just simply terminate somebody's employment who has done something unlawful. We will conduct a criminal investigation, we will for the district attorney's office or the U.S. Attorney's Office or whichever one is applicable to prosecute that individual to whatever the statutes allow," said Sheriff Smith.
After his arrest on Friday, Olison was charged with multiple counts related to possessing a controlled substance in a detention facility with intent to deliver the controlled substance to an inmate. He was charged with delivery of contraband to inmates.
Olison's arrest affidavit says he took marijuana into the Smith County Jail on Friday. Surveillance video also showed him providing a tobacco product to an inmate. He then gave a cell phone to that same inmate.
“When I ran for this office, I said that the Smith County Sheriff's Office would clean its own house and that each employee will be held to a higher standard than the general public, and that’s exactly what we continue to do as we have exhibited today,” said Sheriff Smith.
Olison has worked at both the low risk facility and the Smith County Jail. He was originally hired on May 20, 2012. Sheriff Smith said that Olison had disciplinary actions in his personnel file related to not following protocol and direction, but nothing criminal until now.
"One of the promises was that we were going to be held, not only law enforcement officers and the detention officers of the Smith County Sheriff's Office to a higher standard than the general public, and this is just a continuation of that," added Smith.
The Sheriff’s Office has been conducting this investigation in conjunction with the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) and the Smith County District Attorney’s Office.
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