COMMISSIONER of Corrections, Lieutenant Colonel Sean Prendergast has confirmed that cell phones have been discovered in the vaginas of inmates at the Fort Augusta Adult Correctional Facility.

Following a sweep of the all-female prison recently, five cellular phones, including high-end camera phones, were reportedly found hidden in inmates body cavities. According to a source inside the facility, the inserted phones had been wrapped in tissue and tied in plastic.

A number of inmates have expressed their anger and have called into question the legality of correctional officers performing cavity searches.

It is not right for officers to feel for cell phones! one angry inmate said in an interview. You are suppose to strip, stoop and cough, but they are not suppose to touch you. So how come they pushing they hand up inside of you?

But Prendergast has denied that the cavity searches were performed and that the phones removed by correctional officers.

Of course correctional officers are allowed to touch the inmates, he said. However, they are not allowed to do body cavity searches.

He explained that in an effort to intensify search of the facility, hand-held metal detectors were brought in and the devices discovered.

We had a case where a number of the females were found to be hiding cell phones in certain body cavities. Now how did this come to our attention? We brought in hand-held metal detectors and obviously if the metal detector goes off and they have on flimsy clothing then something must be hidden where the eyes cant see it. Once the discovery was made, a number of the inmates decided to take the items out themselves. But there were a few who refused to take the items out and so we got a vehicle with the intention of taking them to the KPH to have a doctor conduct the searches for us. Certainly not our staff, but a doctor at the KPH, he explained.