'Major takedown' at Rikers Island nets 17 arrests, including correction officers

NEW YORK -- (WPIX) -- A "major takedown" at Rikers Island involving contraband smuggling netted 17 arrests, including two correction officers, a jail cook, inmates and civilians, a source told PIX11 News Thursday.

The accused allegedly brought scalpels, narcotics and other contraband into the jail, notorious for violence within its walls and described by some as "the worst place on Earth," in exchange for thousands of dollars in bribes.

Two correction officers and a cook at Rikers have been suspended pending the investigation, the source said.

This takedown has links back to at least November 2015 when Correction Officer Kevin McKoy was found allegedly carrying 16 packages of marijuana into Rikers, according to a PIX11 News source.

That arrest led to the uncovering of a larger network of smugglers, some of them correction officers, bringing drugs, weapons and other contraband behind bars. Inmates and civilians were also arrested, sources said.