Drug 'Kingpin' Sentenced To 10 To 20 Years For Operating Meth Ring Inside Bucks County Prison
BUCKS COUNTY, Pa. (CBS) – A self-proclaimed drug "kingpin" of the Bucks County Correctional Facility will spend up to 20 years in state prison for running a methamphetamine ring that targeted women battling drug addictions. Police say 24-year-old Shayla Hadley, of Quakertown, pleaded guilty to dealing in unlawful proceeds, contraband charges, conspiracy, and other felony counts related to distributing meth to fellow inmates at the facility.
Hadley admitted she smuggled a large quantity of meth into the jail on Jan. 7, 2018 and dispensed the drugs to other inmates in exchange for money deposited into her commissary account.
An investigation found she hid the drugs in a pill bottle and secreted it inside her vagina. She involved at least 11 other inmates from a section of the prison of the known as the "bubble," an area that addresses the needs of women with drug addiction.
Hadley gave the women free drugs as payment and a form of manipulation.
Within a few days, she made almost $700 from the drug ring.
In recorded prison phone calls she referred to herself as a "Kingpin" and "El Chapo." She also bragged that no one could touch her and called the women working for her junkies.
Prior to sentencing, she read a prepared statement apologizing to the judge, highlighting her own addiction issues but adding she couldn't place all the blame on her drug use.
"This case is all about meth, money and malice," Assistant District Attorney Ashley C. Towhey said. "Shayla Hadley did not care one bit about any of these defendants she was exploiting. All she cared about was herself, her money and her commissary."
Her scheme unraveled when one of her drug operation members experienced a reaction to the meth and needed medical attention. While other inmates rushed to help the woman, Hadley told them the woman should be left alone.
Judge Rea B. Boylan sentenced Hadley to 10 to 20 years in state prison, stating that Hadley showed no remorse for her actions prior to entering a guilty plea.
"You, in a predatory way, took advantage of the circumstances of the women who were with you," Judge Boylan said.
The judge also ordered Hadley to serve a concurrent sentence of one to two years for a separate possession with intent to deliver charge that stemmed from a traffic stop by Pennridge Regional Police in West Rockhill Township.
Police say Hadley's second-in-command, Bree Allison Taylor, of Bedminster, was sentenced to four-and-a-half to nine years in state prison after entering a guilty plea on April 2. Thirty-two-year-old Aleah Marie Moore, of Bensalem, was sentenced to two to five years in state prison after entering a guilty plea on the same day.
Seven other women involved in the drug ring were also sentenced to lesser charges:
• Alexis Hall, 25, was sentenced to three to 23 months in county prison.
• Kristen Horn, 31, was sentenced to 36 months of probation and 50 hours of community service.
• Megan Hartwell, 34, was sentenced to 24 months of probation.
• Dominique Menichella, 25, was sentenced to 12 months of probation.
• Nicole Auslander, 37, was sentenced to 36 months of probation.
• Barbara Bailey-Dawson, 47, was sentenced to 12 months of probation.
• Rachel Engelmann, 25, was sentenced to 36 months of probation.
