RIKERS ISLAND — Two Rikers Island guards have been arrested for allegedly possessing marijuana and cocaine — among more than a dozen correction officers who have recently been accused of running afoul of the law, authorities said.
The arrests came in the wake of a search of Rikers Island that the city's Department of Investigation and Department of Correction launched on Monday in response to information from the DOI's ongoing investigation of violence and illegal activity in the facility such as contraband smuggling.
More than a dozen officers were referred for prosecution as a result of the DOI investigation, according to a source familiar with the matter.
But the drug arrests were not part of that sweep.
Correction officers Infinite Devine Rahming, 30, and Steven Dominguez, 26, were arrested on Monday morning and charged with criminal possession of a controlled substance, according to court documents.
The arrests came after investigators spotted them each with a bookbag allegedly containing cocaine at 40 w. 225th St., near Broadway, in Marble Hill.
According to prosecutors the bags contained at least 8 ounces of the drug in total.
Investigators also found marijuana in Domingeuz's car, the criminal complaint says.
Rahming and Dominguez were arraigned early on Tuesday and held in lieu of $500,000 bond or $250,000 cash. Their next court date is Friday, June 27.
Defense lawyer Peter Troxler did not respond to requests for comment. The Correction Officers' Benevolent Association union and the Department of Correction declined to comment.
