AURORA | An Arapahoe County Jail inmate and his defense attorney face multiple charges linked to allegations that they sneaked meth and marijuana into the jail and distributed it to other inmates, prosecutors said Friday.
Investigators say that while inmate Dominic Villanueba was being held in the Arapahoe County jail earlier this year, his defense attorney, Neil Camera, provided Villanueba with “several bags” of meth and an unreported quantity of marijuana, and that the inmate then worked to distribute the drugs to other inmates, according to a press release from the 18th Judicial District Attorney’s office.
Both men face a bevy of criminal charges related to the investigation.
Villanueba is currently being held in jail in lieu of $100,000 bond. He apparently now faces charges of violating his probation.
His original criminal conviction was not immediately available Friday.
Camera was arrested and booked, but his bond status was not available.
The investigation began in May when jail officials received information that drugs were being passed among inmates and between jail pods, Arapahoe County spokesperson Eric Ross said in a statement.
“Deputies conducted a temporary lockdown and shakedown of the pods,” Ross said. “During the search, a body scanner detected a foreign object in an inmate’s crotch. Several bags of methamphetamine were subsequently seized.”
That inmate was apparently Villanueba.
In reviewing jail phone calls between Villanueba and Camera, as well as video tape of their meetings, investigators determined Camera provided the drugs to his jailed client, according to the press release.
“It’s disappointing that an attorney would use his position to introduce illegal substances into a controlled facility where so many people are actively dealing with addiction,” Sheriff Tyler Brown said in a statement. “His actions put his own client, as well as hundreds of other individuals in our custody, in danger and at risk. There are consequences when someone makes the decision to bring illegal substances into our facility, and we will continue to do everything we can to keep our jail safe and drug-free.”
Camera is a 2021 graduate of the University of Denver Sturm College of Law and former public defender for the State of Colorado, according to details on his LinkedIn profile.
Ross said prosecutors will not currently release details about how the drugs were handed off to Villanueba as a measure to protect the integrity of the ongoing investigation.
Both Villanueba and Camera face charges of conspiracy to distribute meth and marijuana, distribution of those drugs, among other charges.