PENDER COUNTY — A Pender County detention officer has been terminated and faces criminal charges after allegedly accessing an inmate’s personal cell phone without authorization.
Jerrod Richardson, 38, was arrested Monday following an investigation by the North Carolina State Bureau of Investigation. Richardson is charged with one misdemeanor count of willful failure to discharge duties and one misdemeanor count of accessing computers.
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According to the arrest warrant, the incident occurred on Dec. 30, 2025, while Richardson was on duty at the Pender County Sheriff’s Office Detention Center. Investigators allege Richardson unlawfully searched and viewed personal images within a photograph application on a victim’s cell phone for purposes that had “no law enforcement or investigative purpose” while the victim was confined to the detention center.
In a statement from the Pender County Sheriff’s Office, Sheriff Alan Cutler reportedly placed Richardson on administrative leave and initiated an internal investigation immediately after learning of the allegations. The case was then referred to the SBI for a criminal investigation, resulting in Richardson’s termination and the filing of criminal charges on Feb. 9.
“The Pender County Sheriff’s Office holds its employees to the highest standards of professionalism, integrity, and accountability,” the office said in a statement. “Actions that fall short of those standards are taken seriously and addressed in accordance with the law and agency policy.”
Richardson was released on a $10,000 unsecured bond and is scheduled for an initial hearing on March 11, at 9 a.m. at the Pender County Courthouse in Burgaw. Because the case is currently pending, the Sheriff’s Office declined to comment further on the incident.
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