Trial set for Canon City correctional officer accused of bringing drugs into prison

Tracy Harmon, The Pueblo Chieftain, Colo.
·2 min read

Dec. 7—CAÑON CITY — A former correctional officer accused of attempting to bring drugs into the medium-security Fremont prison pleaded not guilty to a contraband charge Dec. 6 in Fremont County District Court.

Kyle Gotham Tatro, 32, is charged with first-degree introduction of contraband. A trial is scheduled to run from March 23-24.

Tatro, who was working as a correctional officer for the Department of Corrections at the time, allegedly attempted to bring methamphetamine and opiates into the prison.

According to a probable cause affidavit authored by Criminal Investigator Christopher Barr of the Colorado Department of Corrections Inspector General's office, an informant alerted authorities that Tatro was expected to bring contraband into Fremont Correctional Facility in Cañon City on June 25.

When confronted by authorities upon his arrival at the prison, Tatro reportedly handed over a clear quart-size plastic bag that contained four plastic pens. According to the affidavit, one pen allegedly contained 5.9 grams of a white crystal-like substance that field-tested positive for methamphetamine; two pens contained 19.7 grams of a dark tar-like substance that tested positive for opiates and the fourth pen contained nine small blue pills that were identified as Oxycodone.

During an interview with authorities, Tatro allegedly said he had agreed to bring in the pens and was paid $250 to deliver them. He allegedly admitted to being paid $340 cash the first time he brought drugs into the prison.

Tatro, "knew it was wrong and illegal to do so," according to the affidavit. He reportedly described a financial hardship due to COVID-19 and said he put $100 of the first payment toward a vacation and used the other $240 to buy a remote-controlled car.

Tatro is free on a $2,500 personal recognizance bail pending the outcome of the case. Tatro, who had worked for the DOC since 2019, was being paid an annual salary of $52,416.

He was nitially placed on administrative leave but is no longer working for the department, according to Annie Skinner, public information officer for the DOC.

Chieftain reporter Tracy Harmon covers business news. She can be reached by email at tharmon@chieftain.com or via Twitter at twitter.com/tracywumps.