Inmate charged with flooding his prison unit
A Butler County Prison inmate is facing new charges after authorities say he broke a fire suppression sprinkler and flooded the behavior management unit where he was being housed.
County detectives Wednesday charged Charles J. Perkins, 26, of Butler with misdemeanor counts of institutional vandalism and reckless endangerment in connection with the Aug. 10 incident that resulted in about $3,400 in damages.
Perkins was alone in his cell about 5:30 p.m. when he allegedly dislodged the sprinkler head from the fire protection system, authorities said.
The suspected vandalism caused the pod to flood and sent water flowing down the corridor and into the elevator shaft. It also knocked the fire suppression system off line.
Detective Tim Fennell said it cost $2,751.50 to repair the elevator and $690 to repaint the damaged areas. He also noted that the action endangered other inmates and prison employees by disrupting the fire suppression system.
Perkins is to be arraigned on charges Tuesday. He has been in the prison since Aug. 7 following his arrest on felony drug and misdemeanor drug charges.
In that case, authorities said, state police allegedly seized more than 300 stamp bags of suspected heroin along with suspected crack cocaine and marijuana, nearly $1,000 in currency and other drug contraband following a traffic stop in Butler Township.
Those charges, as well as unrelated charges in three other criminal cases, are pending in Butler County Court. Prison officials said Perkins is being held on $600,000 bond.
