A Sullivan County grand jury unsealed indictments charging eight people in connection with smuggling contraband -- including cellphones and methamphetamine -- into the Woodbourne Correctional Facility, between about January and August 2025.
According to District Attorney Brian P. Conaty, former corrections officer Kyle Raven was part of a “highly calculated and orchestrated conspiracy” with inmate Andrew Stoughtenger to smuggle drugs and phones into the prison multiple times. Raven allegedly received more than $17,000 in cash and electronic Cash App payments.
Stoughtenger’s wife, Amy Preston Stoughtenger, allegedly helped the two men disguise payments made for the illegal deliveries by using her company, Freedom Foods.
Raven faces charges six charges including second-degree bribe receiving, first-degree promoting prison contraband, fourth-degree money laundering, second-degree receiving reward for official misconduct, and two counts of official misconduct.
“When an officer chooses to betray that oath by bringing in illegal drugs and contraband behind prison walls for personal profit, the consequences extend far beyond the individual transaction,” Conaty said. “Such conduct fuels violence, addiction, intimidation, and disorder within our correctional institutions, placing fellow officers, prison staff, inmates, and the public at greater risk.”
The DA said fear for their safety in light of Raven and Stoughtenger's operation was part of the reason many Woodbourne corrections officers joined the wildcat strike by corrections officers across New York last year.
“Those who wear a badge are held to a higher standard because the public places extraordinary trust in them. When that trust is violated through corruption, this office will pursue those cases with the same determination and vigor that we bring to every criminal prosecution. No one is above the law,” Conaty said.
Several other inmates were also charged in connection with the operation.
Inmate Dylan Coats was charged with bribery, rewarding official misconduct, conspiracy, promoting prison contraband and criminal possession of a controlled substance.
Inmates Radell Heard, Leo Lazaro, Kenneth Thomas, and Derek Gallo were charged with promoting prison contraband.
Conaty said it was “highly likely” there was a connection between the operation and several hospitalizations that took place in the spring of 2025, but said “the indictment does not allege that.”
