Substitute teacher arrested at Lake County school, snared in jail drug smuggling roundup

EUSTIS, Fla. — A Lake County substitute teacher was among the three dozen people arrested in a scheme to bring drugs into the Orange County jail.

Investigators said Arnetta Bacon was taken into custody at Eustis Heights Elementary School after she was pulled out of a classroom.

Bacon was charged with conspiracy to commit racketeering and unlawful use of a two-way communication device, both felonies.

Investigators said jail guards noticed in the spring that a number of inmates were under the influence. A six-month investigation followed, which netted Bacon, a private lawyer and two corrections officers, as well as 22 inmates.

“The Orange County Corrections Department condemns the actions alleged regarding the two officers charged in this investigation,” jail staff wrote in a statement. “Such misconduct is not in line with the more than 1,600 men and women performing honorably within the agency.”

The Lake County school district administrators confirmed Bacon had been fired.

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