Who is Ray Garcia? Warden ran ‘rape club’ at prison where Lori Loughlin and Felicity Huffman were inmates
WARNING: This article contains content about sexual abuse that some readers may find distressing. Discretion is advised.
DUBLIN, CALIFORNIA: In a stunning misuse of authority, a male warden faces trial for reportedly operating a "rape club" at a women's prison in California where Lori Loughlin, Felicity Huffman, and Allison Mack were inmates. Ray J Garcia, 55, was the head of the Federal Correctional Institution in Dublin when the FBI discovered naked images of detainees in their cells on his government-issued mobile in 2021.
The court heard how the acts by accused Garcia and his team were so blatant that prisoners dubbed it as "rape club" at the beginning of his hearing on seven counts of sexual abuse conduct involving three female detainees, New York Post reported. Four additional prison staff members have also been accused of sexual misconduct; two of them have previously entered guilty pleas. Garcia allegedly constantly told an inmate called Melisa that he "wanted to f—k" her and that he showed her nude images of himself "all the time," according to reports.
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Between 2019 and 2021, according to the prosecution, Garcia digitally penetrated Melissa and made her touch his penis. In these instances, Garcia would put "half-eaten, sucked on" lollipops into her vagina in the jail bathroom and cell, New York Post reported. "He would always talk about his penis," she testified. "He had sexual fantasies and I allowed it." Garcia, who served as warden from November 2020 until he was placed on administrative leave in July 2021, was accused by the prosecution of keeping victims quiet by offering to assist in their early release.
Melissa admitted to investigators that she obeyed Garcia despite feeling humiliated and harmed during their sexual meetings. The male warden, according to the prosecution, sexually assaulted the ladies in parts of the prison where he was aware that there were no cameras. Garcia, who was detained in September 2021, has not pleaded guilty to the allegations.
Dublin, which is roughly 20 miles southeast of Oakland and has room for 650 prisoners, is known as "Club Fed" because a number of famous people have have been incarcerated there including Patty Hearst and Hollywood Madam Heidi Fleiss. Felicity Huffman, who admitted her involvement in the college admissions fraud, served 11 days of a two-week sentence in 2019. In 2020, Lori Loughlin spent nearly two months in the prison for her involvement in the same case. While both were inmates, Garcia worked at the prison; it is unknown if they ever crossed paths. About a month after Allison Mack began serving a three-year prison sentence in June 2021 for charges of racketeering and conspiracy connected to her involvement in the NXIVM cult scandal, Garcia was formally fired from his position.
In 2020, two Dublin employees were accused of abusing an inmate, which led to an FBI criminal investigation and Garcia's arrest. The former warden is the top federal prison official to be taken into custody in more than ten years. If proven guilty of all charges, he may receive a sentence as long as over 100 years and pay a fine of $250,000.