WFTV.com News 

Story

Prison Worker Accused Of Smuggling Items To Inmates

A woman who works at the Lake Correctional State Prison in Clermont is in jail, accused of smuggling drugs, cash and phones to inmates.

Julia Bedenbaugh, who lives in Eustis, is a human resources counselor at the prison. The state says it is in the process of firing Bedenbaugh.

Sheriff Deputies say they learned Bedenbaugh was receiving drug packages at a post office in Astatula.

Deputies arrested Bedenbaugh at the post office Thursday night while she was making a pick up.

“Any job inside a correctional facility is a very sensitive position and I think we and the State Corrections Department would expect they would live up to a higher standard and not do something like that,” said Jim Vachon with the Lake County Sheriff’s Office.

Lake County Sheriff's Corporal Jim Vachon says deputies have video of Bedenbaugh picking up the packages.

“We don't exactly know how she was bringing it in. She has refused to cooperate and answer any other questions,” said Vachon.

Since Bedenbaugh is not talking, investigators say they do not know how long she had been smuggling in contraband or if she was working with someone else inside the prison. Bedenbaugh has been charged with Intent to Distribute Cocaine. Charges related to the smuggling of contraband into the prison are pending.

The sheriff's office will not say who was sending those packages or how it found out about the crime.
Click Picks
Video Clips
What do you get when you put a man's head on a baby's body and a baby's head on a man's body? It's a 'ManBaby,' possibly the freakiest way to tweak a family photo. View Images ››

Strange News Photos

From brilliant to bizarre, our 99-photo slideshow captures a variety of strange news. Photos are added often. Take A Look!

County-By-County News

Get Hyper-Local On WFTV.com

Visit our County-By-County section for the latest news headlines out of your county. » County-By-County

When you take videos or photos of Central Florida news or weather events, iWitness is your place to upload them. » iWitness

Visit your headquarters for county-by-county news and resources, and a place to share community videos and photos. » 9Central