Three people were arrested on drug charges inside the Pike County Jail last week.
According to a report by Pike County Sheriff David Greenwood, the Pike County Sheriff’s Department conducted a drug investigation at the Pike County Jail facility at 9:10 pm last Wednesday, August 17th.
Through the course of the investigation, Greenwood says it was determined that inmates who were working as trustees in the jail, had smuggled methamphetamine into the Pike County Jail facility.
Subsequent to the investigation, 34-year-old Sarah M. Burton and 41-year-old Richard S. Burton, both of Manchester, were arrested for bringing methamphetamine into a penal institution, unlawful delivery of methamphetamine, and unlawful possession of methamphetamine.
55-year-old James R. Merryman of Pittsfield was also arrested in the operation for unlawful possession of a controlled substance in a penal institution, possession of methamphetamine, and possession of drug paraphernalia.
Merryman has been lodged at the Pike County Jail since an arrest on April 21st of this year at a residence in Pittsfield on one count of possession of methamphetamine and two counts of theft.
Richard Burton was serving a 60-day sentence after he plead guilty to a charge of possession of a controlled substance last month, stemming from an arrest in July of 2019. Two additional counts of possession of a controlled substance were dismissed per the plea and Burton was ordered to report to the jail on august 10th.
No first appearance date has been set as of press time for the three defendants. Sheriff Greenwood says no contraband actually made it to the Pike County Jail cells, and he reminds the public that all suspects are considered innocent until proven guilty.