Chicago woman charged with smuggling drug-soaked paper into Cook County Jail

CHICAGO (WBBM NEWSRADIO) — A woman from Chicago's Southwest Side has been accused of trying to smuggle papers soaked with illegal drugs into the Cook County Jail.

Brad Curry, the chief of staff for the Cook County Sheriff's Office, said 27-year-old Jada Henry tried to slip a bag containing papers soaked with a synthetic opioid to a detainee she was visiting.

Curry said attempting to sneak illegal drugs past jail guards this way has become increasingly common in recent years.

He said there are a couple of reasons why it's happening.

“It’s very lucrative,” Curry said. “One sheet of paper, cut up, can make up to $10,000. It’s very lucrative for people that want to sell it, but it’s also for people that just have that addiction and need to use it to continue to feed that addiction.”

Curry said Henry was the 39th person this year charged with either possessing drug-soaked papers at Cook County Jail or trying to sneak them in.

Many of the drugs that people are trying to smuggle into the jail this way are extremely dangerous, he added.

“Most of these substances that they’re soaking paper in are deadly,” Curry said. “They are something that’s going to cost their life if they use too much of it or if it’s something that their body reacts to. Some of these substances start to shut the organs down immediately, and unfortunately you won’t know that it’s doing that until it’s too late.”

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