A former janitor at a Bay Area state prison pleaded guilty to smuggling methamphetamine into the facility as part of a years-long scheme that netted him more than $100,000, federal prosecutors said. Keith Reindeer Randle, 56, of Vallejo admitted in federal court Thursday to possession with intent to distribute more than 300 grams of meth to inmates at the San Quentin Rehabilitation Center, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of California.Randle was employed at the prison by the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation. According to prosecutors, Randle used his position at the prison to smuggle meth, cannabis and tobacco to inmates between January 2019 and August 2024. In exchange, he accepted payments from inmates and their associates, charging about $1,000 per item brought into the facility, prosecutors said.
Federal authorities said Randle initially accepted payments directly from inmates, but later shifted to receiving money from associates and family members in an effort to avoid detection by law enforcement. Investigators caught Randle on Aug. 15, 2024, inside San Quentin carrying a hollowed-out peanut butter jar containing 301 grams of meth and cannabis. Prosecutors said the jar had been painted brown and sealed shut to appear unopened. Court records show Randle profited heavily from the operation, receiving at least $31,000 through PayPal between January 2019 and April 2020 for smuggling contraband. From July 2021 through August 2022, authorities said an inmate’s wife sent him roughly $40,926 through Cash App in exchange for deliveries to her husband, who was inside.
By 2023 and 2024, prosecutors said Randle primarily accepted cash payments, and federal agents seized more than $55,000 in cash from two residences connected to Randle in 2024. He later admitted the money was proceeds from the drug smuggling scheme…