A Pitkin County jail inmate allegedly broke off a sprinkler head at the jail causing flooding that that knocked out law enforcement communications and caused at least $50,000 in damage.
Benjamin Garrett, 32, who is unemployed but previously worked as a chef at two Carbondale restaurants, was arrested last week after he called emergency dispatchers and reported that a group of 30 people representing a “crime ring” were trying to illegally tow his car, the . An Aspen police officer who responded wrote in the police report that Garrettap story had no merit “and that he either had a mental-health issue or was on something.” Garrett was arrested on a drug charge after he told the officer he had methamphetamine and a meth pipe in his pocket.
Water from the sprinkler knocked out servers in the jail basement that control 911 communications, law enforcement communications and law enforcement records-management systems. Vail 911 dispatchers handled calls for about an hour until Aspen dispatchers were able to move to a temporary location. Pitkin County experienced no interruption in 911 service, officials have said. County officials spent $50,000 to procure a new server to bring the records-management system back online.
District Judge Denise Lynch on Monday released Garrett on a $3,000 personal recognizance bond saying he has no prior criminal history and plans to remain in the Roaring Fork Valley.
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