Cook Co. jail on lockdown for weapons search

Cook County Jail remained on partial lockdown late Friday afternoon after authorities said they believed a gun was smuggled into the maximum security area.

At 7:15 p.m. Thursday, the jail - specifically Division 10 of the complex - was put on lockdown after officers learned that a gun might be inside, said Cook County Sheriff's spokesman Steve Patterson through an e-mail.

Division 10 is the area of the prison where the most violent offenders are housed, Patterson said of the unit which currently houses 736 detainees. Those inmates were removed from their cells and confined to a basement or gymnasium while deputies searched each cell, tier, hallway and common area, Patterson said.

Deputies locked down other divisions of the jail as a precaution, Patterson said. The lockdown delayed the release of 80 inmates who were in the process of bonding out at the time of the incident, Patterson said. All were searched and interviewed. None were involved in the incident, Patterson said, and the release process resumed around midnight.

As of Friday afternoon, only Division 10 remained locked down. Normal operations, including visitation, resumed in all other divisions, Patterson said.

Sheriff's officials learned a weapon may have been on the premises at about 6:30 p.m. Thursday and locked down the jail about 45 minutes later.

It is unknown how the weapon could have been smuggled in, Patterson said, adding that all visitors and employees pass through metal detectors and are patted down before they enter the facility.

The Sheriff's Police Hostage, Barricade and Terrorism Team and the Jail's Emergency Response Team - the equivalent of SWAT teams for those respective offices - conducted a cell-by-cell search. At the same time, investigators with the Sheriff's Criminal Intelligence Unit began pursuing leads and conducting interviews.

As of late Friday, authorities had not found a weapon and no one had been arrested said Patterson, adding that investigators continue to pursue leads inside and outside of the jail.