NEWARK, N.J. (1010 WINS) — A senior New Jersey corrections officer is accused of taking a monthly bribe from a prisoner in exchange for cash, jewelry, cologne, cold cuts and espresso, the state Office of the Attorney General said Wednesday.
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Werner Gramajo is charged with official misconduct, bribery, conspiracy and tampering with public records.
The 45-year-old who worked at Northern State Prison in Newark was supplying contraband on request to inmate Thomas De Vingo, 64, who was incarcerated on a robbery conviction, authorities said.
Detectives said De Vingo approached Gramajo in early 2020 about the arrangement after hearing the officer was experiencing financial trouble. Gramajo then, over the course of roughly a year, received up to $500 per month with several deliveries made to the inmate each month.
Gramajo "gets paid monthly and well for his services," De Vingo allegedly said in a communication with an unnamed civilian, obtained by the attorney general’s office. In other exchanges, he advised the contact to "tell [Gramajo] not to forget the Italian espresso" and to tell the officer "the old guy wants his things."
The Department of Corrections learned about the scheme when a note asking for food to be sent to "Tommy Two Times" with $40 in cash was discovered in a high-security area that was off-limits to inmates.
Authorities said Gramajo falsely stated in a report, after the note was uncovered, that he was unaware of the conspiracy and who on the prison staff might be involved.
He allegedly acknowledged one case in which he delivered contraband to De Vingo, but he said he was never involved in any cash transactions.
"I would like to state that this was the only time that I brought stuff to that inmate," Gramajo wrote, prosecutors said.
De Vingo, who NJ.com has been in prison since October 2016 and eligible for parole next November, is now also facing charges of bribery, official misconduct and conspiracy in this alleged scheme.
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