Ex-prison guard admits smuggling drugs to inmate

A former city correctional officer pleaded guilty Monday to smuggling OxyContin to an inmate in exchange for $1,000, federal prosecutors said.

Joseph Romano, 31, obtained the drugs and the cash from an outside contact in July 2014 and smuggled 100 pills into Philadelphia Industrial Correctional Center, prosecutors said.

Romano, who pleaded guilty to attempted extortion and two counts of attempted distribution of controlled substances, is scheduled to be sentenced in March. He faces a maximum sentence of 40 years in prison. - Robert Moran