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Guard’s gun missing from prison is recovered

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DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC SAFETY

Janelle Newcomb

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DENNIS ODA/ JULY 25, 2014

Tower 4 at the Oahu Community Correctional Center is seen behind barbed wire in this 2013 photo.

Honolulu police recovered a hand gun today that disappeared from a restroom at Oahu Community Correctional Center.

Honolulu police and state deputy sheriffs earlier launched a search for a woman identified as a “person of interest” in connection with the missing firearm.

An OCCC adult correctional officer left a .38-caliber revolver in a public unisex restroom at the main entrance at about 1 p.m. When the officer went back to get it, the firearm was gone, said Toni Schwartz, Department of Public Safety spokeswoman.

A former pretrial detainee, Janelle Newcomb, 35, was seen in the area and was identified as a person of interest, according to a DPS news release.

She was located and arrested, and the gun was recovered Wednesday evening, Schwartz said.

Newcomb had been released from OCCC on Oct. 13 when her case for harassment, liquor in a public place and unauthorized possession of confidential personal information was dismissed. She was picking up personal belongings at OCCC today.

Schwartz said an administrative investigation has been opened, but the investigation was ongoing and she could not provide information on the officer and any possible disciplinary actions.

“This situation is one that we take very seriously,” said DPS Director Nolan Espinda in a statement. “A full investigation is being conducted so we can make sure safeguards are in place to prevent this from happening again.”

Schwartz said only correctional officers working outside the secured perimeter are permitted to carry firearms.

15 responses to “Guard’s gun missing from prison is recovered”

  1. HRS134 says:

    I wonder if the gun was loaded. :-O

    • justmyview371 says:

      Of course and it came with a box of ammo. What kind of corrections officer leaves his weapon in a public restroom at OCCC?

      • HRS134 says:

        Not hating on females or anything, but from reading the story and seeing the coverage on two different television news casts, the gender of the ACO wasn’t specified, so it could have been “his” or “her” revolver.

        Do they issue revolvers with a box of ammo? Most of the armed ACOs’ I see have a revolver and what appears to be two speed loader pouches on their belt. Have never observed if there was anything in the pouches, just that they were there.

  2. Publicbraddah says:

    Our corrections personnel leaves a lot to be desired.

  3. gmejk says:

    Good thing his di@k is attached to his body otherwise he might have left it in the bathroom too.

  4. HOSSANA says:

    This was definitely planned by the OCCC officer purposedly leaving his gun in the restroom pretending that it was an accident and then that “person of interest” coming in and taking it and disappearing with it. And you wonder how drugs etc.are found on inmates and in prison as this is because of the correctional officers who are bribed to do these underhanded things.

  5. HRS134 says:

    One news agency reports that the gun was recovered.

  6. sailfish1 says:

    They should fire that correctional officer. Such carelessness is not to be tolerated. Someone could have been killed because of it.

  7. wakempe says:

    Why wasn’t she arrest for theft? mmmmmmmm

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