DARTMOUTH — A former Bristol County jail librarian was indicted along with four co-conspirators for allegedly smuggling synthetic marijuana, known as K-2, into the Dartmouth House of Correction, according to a press release from Sheriff Paul Heroux.
Sheriff Heroux said the case marks “perhaps the largest alleged employee drug bust in Bristol County jail history.”
According to the sheriff’s office, Ginger Hook, 46, of New Bedford, worked as the jail’s Coordinator of Library Services for about 18 months before resigning in July 2025 when confronted about her alleged activity. She and four others — Joseph Housley, 25, of Rehoboth; Brandin Barbosa-Mayo, 31, of New Bedford; Bestlee Vasquez, 33, of Somerset; and Axel Hazard, 23, of Rhode Island — were indicted by a Bristol County Grand Jury on Oct. 20 as part of a months-long investigation into an alleged drug distribution ring operating inside the jail.
The Special Investigations Unit (SIU) of the Bristol County Sheriff’s Office began investigating in March 2025 after learning that synthetic marijuana was being smuggled into the facility. Investigators determined that inmate Housley was allegedly selling K-2 to other inmates and had recruited two former inmates — Barbosa-Mayo and Vasquez — along with another outside associate, Hazard, and a Sheriff’s Office employee, later identified as Hook, to assist with the operation.
“We are pleased to have collaborated with the Bristol County Sheriff’s Office through a special prosecutor in the investigation that has led to a number of indictments in this case,” Bristol County District Attorney Tom Quinn said.
Intelligence gathered by investigators showed that Hook allegedly smuggled in K-2-infused paperwork on multiple occasions — once in late 2024 and again in February and March of 2025. Surveillance set up on June 9 captured Hook entering the facility carrying a folder that she brought into her office from outside the secure perimeter of the jail.
A search of the folder found 13 sheets of paper disguised as legal documents that later tested positive for synthetic marijuana. The sheriff’s office estimated the sheets would have sold for about $65,000 inside the jail.
Sheriff Heroux said his office has since stepped up efforts to prevent contraband from entering the facility, including increasing drug-detection K-9 units, tightening entry screenings, and pursuing prosecutions.
“Illicit drugs in a correctional setting create many health and safety problems for staff and inmates,” Heroux said. “Keeping illicit drugs out of jails and prisons is a problem in every correctional facility in the country.”
The investigation was led by Captain Christine Fortin of the sheriff’s Special Investigations Unit, with assistance from the Massachusetts State Police Detective Unit assigned to the Bristol County District Attorney’s Office and the New Bedford Regional Office of the Drug Enforcement Administration. The case is being prosecuted by Special Assistant District Attorney Dan Bennett.