Former Leavenworth prison guard admits to tobacco smuggling
A former guard at the federal penitentiary in Leavenworth has admitted to taking thousands of dollars in bribes to smuggle tobacco to inmates.
Marc Buckner, 47, of Kansas City, Kan., was paid $750 each time he smuggled tobacco and rolling papers into the facility, according to his plea agreement in U.S. District Court.
He used homemade shoe inserts to hide the 6-ounce cans of loose tobacco and 230 rolling papers, according to the agreement in which he pleaded guilty to a charge of accepting bribes as a public official.
Buckner, who began working at the prison in 1995, estimated that he had engaged in the smuggling activity once or twice a month from 2005 until he was caught in 2014.
He faces a sentence of up to 15 years in prison.
Another former guard at the Leavenworth facility was sentenced to probation last month for also smuggling tobacco.
Tony Rizzo: 816-234-4435, @trizzkc
This story was originally published November 8, 2016 at 1:58 PM with the headline "Former Leavenworth prison guard admits to tobacco smuggling."