BOWLING GREEN, MO. -- A cook at the men's prison in Bowling Green is accused of having sex with one of the inmates, and witnesses say they heard or saw it happen.
Forty-nine-year-old Rochella Bland of Vandalia is charged with felony sexual contact with a prisoner. She will be in court February Eighth.
The incident allegedly happened shortly after 2 p.m. on May 17 of 2011. An investigator reported witnesses heard moaning sounds and heavy breathing over an institutional radio that had been issued to the suspect.
A guard who went to check on the report said he found the suspect and inmate Shawn Steinhurst having sex in a cooler of the vegetable preparation room. Other staff members reported seeing Bland fastening her pants.
The prisoner reportedly admitted to the sexual contact, and allegedly told authorities that he and Bland had done it twice before. Authorities said Bland initially denied the allegation, but later admitted to having sex with the prisoner.
Steinhurst was not charged, but was moved to another facility. Records show he is serving a 10-year sentence for statutory rape and statutory sodomy at the prison in Farmington.
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