Louisiana inmates accused of using Bible to make cigarettes

A group of inmates at the Evangeline Parish jail in Louisiana are facing brand new charges after investigators accused them of using pages of the Bible to make cigarettes.

According to the Evangeline Parish Sheriff's Office, or EPSO, late Friday night and early Saturday morning, inmates were seen going into one dorm restroom and appeared drunk and stumbling while they walked. The deputies immediately notified the warden of the suspicious activity and after entering the dormitory, they smelled burnt paper, according to the sheriff’s office.

After searching the room, deputies allegedly found pages of a Bible rolled into a cigarette that appeared to be soaked with cleaning chemicals and other substances. Using two batteries, a magnet, a metal plate, and a staple they managed to light the Bible pages, and then smoked them, according to the ESPO.

Eleven inmates were charged with the following felony counts:

• Possession of contraband in a penal facility

• Fire raising in a correctional facility

• Distribution or possession of synthetic cannabinoids

All defendants are considered innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.

What did the sheriff say? According to a report by local outlet Acadiana News First, Evangeline Parish Sheriff Charles Guillory said that it is disheartening that the inmates would use the Lord’s book, saying that their act of tearing out the pages and smoking them gets to him. Guillory also said the inmates were deceiving the leaders of the ministry classes they were attending in jail because their ultimate goal was to steal papers out of the Bible.