Former Alexandria Deputy Igwe Pleads Guilty in Jail Drug Smuggling Case

Amarachukwu W. Igwe, a former Alexandria sheriff's deputy, pleaded guilty on Wednesday, Oct. 29, to charges stemming from attempts to move drugs to an inmate inside the city's detention center. She was arrested April 4, 2026, and worked for the Alexandria Sheriff's Office from July 14, 2025, until that date.

The case began in the first week of April, when an inmate told the sheriff's office that a sworn officer had provided food and narcotics to prisoners. An investigation identified Igwe, 33, and a search warrant affidavit described an "overly familiar relationship with a male inmate."

According to the affidavit, investigators recovered a plastic-wrapped package of drugs concealed in Igwe's bra when she handed it over. She was booked at the Arlington County jail and charged with delivery of drugs to prisoners or committed persons, a Class 5 felony carrying one to ten years in prison.

The affidavit details exchanges on March 14 at 1:45 a.m. and March 20 at 10:40 p.m. when Igwe delivered handwritten notes to the inmate. Around 1 a.m. on March 21, she provided a pen containing an unknown substance, which the inmate placed in his sock. Sheriff's office investigators also found that the inmate called a D.C. number to arrange a drug pickup and that Igwe was to be paid $500.

Phone records from March 18 through April 2, 2026, showed Igwe was instructed to call the inmate's source to set up deliveries. A March 29 pickup near Nationals Stadium in Washington was planned for depressant drugs, K2 sheets, Suboxone strips and Percocets, the affidavit states.

Igwe is represented by attorney Willie Mejia. Her sentencing is scheduled for Jan. 21, 2027.