BAYPORT, Minn. — The Stillwater Correctional Facility was placed on temporary lockdown Thursday after staff members were exposed to suspected synthetic drugs and had to be taken to the hospital, officials said.
On Thursday morning, staff members responded to a report of a prisoner smoking an unknown substance in his cell. One of the responding correction officers became lightheaded and nauseous. He was taken by ambulance to a nearby hospital. Officials said six more staff members experienced similar reactions and five were taken to the hospital. Then, in the same housing unit, a prisoner threw a container with an unknown substance from his cell that landed near staff and three more staff members became sick and had to be taken to the hospital.
"In total, nine MCF-Stillwater staff were taken to the hospital for evaluation; all but one staff were transported by paramedics. One staff member was given Narcan when they began to experience symptoms. As of Thursday afternoon, all staff have been treated and released," stated a Minnesota Department of Corrections news release.
The prisoner who was caught smoking the substance in his cell told investigators that the substance was "a stronger than expected dose of synthetic K-2."
The Minnesota Department of Corrections (DOC) is investigating to determine the substance and how it got into the prison.
DOC officials said recent investigations have found MDMB-4en-PINACA, soaked into paper and dried. PINACA is an indazole-based synthetic cannabinoid that can be bought online, according to the release. Investigators said the synthetic drugs "can be introduced into the facility through the mail." DOC officials said prisons across the country have been dealing with this problem. Some of the methods they are doing are scanning the prisoner's mail and photocopying all the mail before delivering it.
“These synthetic substances are particularly dangerous because the chemical properties that comprise them are unknown and uncontrolled,” said Minnesota Department of Corrections Commissioner Paul Schnell. “We are prioritizing our investigative efforts to identify and prosecute those responsible for conspiring to introduce these substances into the secure correctional environment. For the safety of our staff, we are reviewing and updating our emergency response protocols to suspected drug use incidents,” Commissioner Paul Schnell said in the release.
