Federal inmates charged with assaulting correctional officers

BRUNSWICK, GA.:  Three federal prison inmates have been charged in separate incidents in which correctional officers were injured.

Eduardo Bermudez, 21; Dominique Moultrie, 31; and Ulysses Hensen, 43, inmates at Federal Correctional Institution Jesup, in Jesup, Ga., each are charged with Assaulting, Resisting, or Impeding employees of the Federal Bureau of Prisons, said Bobby L. Christine, U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Georgia. The charge carries a penalty of up to 20 years in prison.

In each case, the defendant is alleged to have refused instructions from correctional officers before assaulting them, resulting in injuries to the officers.

“The protection of our correctional officers is of paramount concern,” said U.S. Attorney Christine. “Our office will not hesitate to prosecute inmates who harm the officers whose job it is to house those inmates safely and humanely.”

 “Staff at our federal correctional institutions serve, at times, under difficult conditions, trying to keep prisons safe for incarcerated felons,” said Chris Hacker, Special Agent in Charge of FBI Atlanta. “Any abuse of prison staff by inmates cannot and will not be tolerated, and will be pursued for prosecution by the FBI.”

Criminal indictments contain only charges; defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.

The cases were investigated by the Federal Bureau of Prisons and the FBI, and prosecuted for the United States by Assistant U.S. Attorney Marcela C. Mateo.