A prison officer was arrested yesterday after he was allegedly caught with packets of marijuana, cigarettes, razor blades, and imitation firearms during a joint operation at the Maximum Security Prison (MSP) in Arouca.

The coordinated exercise was conducted by the Police Service and Prison Service.

According to police, random searches were conducted on prison officers arriving for duty. One officer was searched and allegedly found with two vacuum-sealed bags of marijuana, a vacuum-sealed bag containing 69 Broadway cigarettes strapped to his body, and15 Astra razor blades in his wallet.