Deputies: Drone delivering contraband to correctional facility; two arrested

MARLBORO COUNTY, S.C. (WMBF) - Marlboro County deputies arrested two men after reports of a drone flying contraband into the Evans Correctional Institution.

On Sunday, deputies were called to the area of Lindsay Park around 8 p.m., located in front of the prison on the other side of Highway 9, to check the area for a suspicious vehicle as reported by officers from the facility.

Evans officers also told deputies contraband, identified as packages of marijuana, were being flown into the prison by a drone.

Deputies witnessed a grey Dodge Charger leaving the park and conducted a traffic stop. Inside the vehicle, deputies noted one of the men, Steven Allen Washington, 44, of Walterboro had a “noticeable amount of dirt” on his shoes. Washington said he had been “cheating on his wife and had been walking through the grass.”

After noticing a weapon in the vehicle, deputies searched the vehicle and discovered the following:

two handguns
three semi-auto rifles
walkie talkies
night vision optics
a drone remote control
and a camouflage “ghillie” suit

The second man in the vehicle, Antonine Ferguson, 51 of Columbia, also 38-caliber revolver in his pocket when he exited the vehicle.

Both men have been charged with the distribution of marijuana, criminal conspiracy and furnishing contraband to a state inmate or into a state institution or facility.

Ferguson and Washington are being held at the Marlboro County Detention Center.

Stay with WMBF News for updates.