Louisiana bans rapper Kevin Gates from prison visits after photo shows him with cash inside facility

Published 8:03 am Wednesday, October 2, 2019

Rapper Kevin Gates has been banned from all Louisiana prisons after a photo showed him visiting a facility with over $2,000.

News outlets report a photo of Gates at the Elayn Hunt Correctional Center sparked an investigation that led to the ban and disciplinary actions against two corrections officers.

A July department report says Deputy Warden Perry Stagg and Maj. Jason Linzy violated rules during Gates’ visit. It says Gates bypassed body scanners, didn’t sign in and claimed to be visiting his father, although there isn’t record of any relatives at the facility.

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Department spokesman Ken Pastorick says Stagg was demoted and reassigned while Linzy received a letter of counseling.

Investigators recommended Gates face contraband charges but there was no evidence as the money wasn’t seized.