NORTHAMPTON — A Florence man on Monday admitted in court to smuggling drugs into jail.
Travis Mitchell, 38, of 282 Spring St., Apt. 1, pleaded guilty to possessing a Class B substance and assault with a dangerous weapon and was sentenced to three months in the Hampshire County House of Correction, according to court records. That sentence will be served concurrently with a two-year jail sentence for an unrelated crime to which he also pleaded guilty to Monday.
Mitchell originally was in Northampton District Court on Feb. 9 after being charged with disseminating obscene matter to a minor, stalking, intimidating a witness and harassment. He pleaded guilty Monday to stalking and intimidating a witness, according to court records. The other charges were dropped.
In February, Mitchell managed to get from court into the jail without the drugs being detected.
During a cell check Feb. 10, jail officials uncovered a bottle containing a baggie of cocaine and a strip of Suboxone that he said he brought with him to his arraignment.
The drugs were found in Mitchell’s shirt pocket, according to court records. When investigators questioned him about how he managed to smuggle the drugs past jail security — including a strip search — Mitchell told them he put the bottle in his rectum, according to court records.
Later, while under a close watch by a jail officer on Feb. 15, Mitchell became upset and hurled a plastic lunch tray at the officer and tried to tackle him. The officer restrained Mitchell as he resisted on the ground, according to court records.
Michael Majchrowicz can be reached at mmajchrowicz@gazettenet.com.