COLUMBIA, S.C. — An employee at the Alvin S. Glenn Detention Center is being accused of taking money from a detainee at the jail and becomes the eleventh employee to face charges this year.
Deputies announced Friday they'd arrested 29-year-old Zavius Calloway and charged him with misconduct in office and two counts of furnishing contraband in a county jail facility.
Officers said they learned early Friday morning that Calloway was engaged in possible misconduct. Investigators said when they questioned Calloway, he told them that he was roommates and a former co-worker with one of the detainees at the jail. Deputies said the two continued communicating after the detainee arrived at the jail.
At one point, according to investigators, the detainee sent Calloway money through Cash App. They add that Calloway also knew the detainee had a cell phone, which detainees are not supposed to have.
Calloway was arrested and booked into the jail. He received a $15,000 personal recognizance bond on the furnishing contraband charge and a $500 bond on the misconduct in office charge.
Calloway's arrest makes the 11th involving a person who works at the jail this year and the second this week. Most of the arrests have involved providing contraband to employees. In late January, County Administrator Leonardo Brown confirmed the jail was working with the sheriff's department in an increased effort to stop contraband from getting into the jail. The county said all jail employees have annual training and recertification every three years, and they also have training protocols that educate officers on how to avoid improper relationships with inmates.
Scrutiny of the jail has been ongoing and has intensified since the U.S. Department of Justice launched an investigation in November 2023. Allegations include civil rights violations, structural deficiencies, and reports of violence resulting in serious injuries.
A recent inspection prompted authorities to update the facility's corrective action plan, due by March 15, to the South Carolina Department of Corrections, which has jurisdiction over the jail.