Fourth suspect in custody in Putnamville trafficking case

Sarah Kidwell

A fourth suspect in a drug trafficking case at Putnamville Correctional Facility has turned herself in to authorities.

Sarah E. Kidwell, 35, Greenwood, was booked in the Putnam County Jail at 11:50 a.m. on Monday.

She is charged with Level 5 felony conspiracy to traffic a controlled substance with an inmate.

The case first came to light in early December with the arrest of Kidwell’s brother-in-law, former Putnamville correctional officer Micah White, 30, of Linton, who is accused of smuggling drugs into the facility in early November as well as plotting to do it again in December.

White was charged with Level 5 felony conspiracy to traffic a controlled substance with an inmate and Level 6 felony official misconduct.

Two offenders have also been named in the probe, 32-year-old Kenneth Johnson and 31-year-old Keith McCray, both of whom were charged with Level 5 felony conspiracy to traffic a controlled substance with an inmate.

In the course of the investigation into White’s alleged misdeeds, correctional police officers discovered his family relationship with Kidwell. The girlfriend of another Indiana Department of Correction offender, Kidwell is banned by DOC facilities for trafficking.

Court records allege that White had attempted to gain employment at Wabash Valley Correctional Facility in March 2020, “for the purpose of trafficking” with Kidwell’s former boyfriend. Though White did not get the Wabash Valley job, the report indicates “Sarah Kidwell controlled and organized the attempt.”

However, the report alleges that Kidwell was the person in contact with Johnson’s and McCray’s families to coordinate the trafficking event and payments.

The investigation into the incidents are ongoing.

If convicted, Kidwell would face between one and six years in prison for a Level 5 felony.