A Massachusetts lawyer is among four people charged for allegedly scheming to smuggle synthetic marijuana into a Rhode Island jail, federal authorities said Tuesday.
Theresa DiJoseph, of Woburn, was arrested Tuesday morning, along with the woman suspected of handing her the contraband — legal papers that were found to have been soaked in synthetic marijuana, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office for Rhode Island.
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"They found papers with drugs on them?? I feel so so light headed and messed up," DiJoseph texted the inmate she'd been scheduled to meet with minutes after having them confiscated at Wyatt Detention Facility on Dec. 1, according to court documents.
The 50-year-old allegedly went on to say that a correctional officer had to be evaluated after handling the paperwork, adding, "I can’t even drive."
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There was no answer Tuesday at a phone number listed for DiJoseph, who faces charges of intent to distribute a controlled substance, providing a prohibited object to an inmate and making a false statement. She was due to face a federal judge in Providence Tuesday.
DiJoseph and the inmate, 46-year-old Shawn Hart, who faces drug possession charges in Massachusetts, appeared to have been in an relationship based on messages, detailed in the federal criminal complaint, they'd exchanged months before. She allegedly later told investigators that she had feelings for Hart and that they had talked about having an intimate relationship, but they both had partners.
After a visit last July where DiJoseph was reported to have been acting suspiciously, a jail official reviewed their communications and found she had apparently been betting on sports on Hart's behalf as well as sending him photos. She was prohibited from visiting him in person without plexiglass between them, according to the court paperwork, though that restriction was lifted in November.
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Ahead of the Dec. 1 visit, DiJoseph was seen on security cameras meeting with the Connecticut-based girlfriend of another Wyatt detainee, according to the court paperwork, which showed messages between the parties allegedly coordinating the drop-off.
When DiJoseph arrived at the jail, she signed a form acknowledging it's illegal to bring in drugs, according to the complaint. But when an officer examined manila folders she brought with her, he can be seen sniffing one, and calls over a supervisor.
The supervisor determined that 10 sheets had been soaked in synthetic marijuana, also known as K2, each of which can sell for $1,000-$4,000, the complaint said. An FBI laboratory eventually confirmed the presence of synthetic marijuana on the paperwork.
Asked about the papers, DiJoseph allegedly said she "had picked the sheets up from her printer and just brought them here," and after being told she wouldn't be allowed to continue the visit, and while the correctional officer who'd touched the papers was getting medical attention, said, "Okay I understand, but how long does this last? This feeling, when does it go away? I cannot drive like this."
DiJoseph allegedly went on to message Hart about the papers minutes later, then again several days later. When Hart messaged her on Dec. 4 to ask about the paperwork, she replied, according to the criminal complaint, "Honestly honey. I didn’t see them or knew that I touched them. I have no clue how many were there. Maybe 4? That’s my best guess. When he held the pages up, they were a different color. My letterhead I use is different color too. I’ve got no explanation. I should’ve seen that but [correctional officer]’s reaction to it? How did I handle it without the same reaction?"
In an interview about the meeting, DiJoseph allegedly changed her story several times, eventually saying that Hart had provided her with the contact information and that she believed Hart would pay her back in some way when he eventually got out of jail.
NBC10 Boston has reached out to DiJoseph and her attorneys, but has not received a response.
