James Johnson, 36, leaves Brooklyn federal court on March 18, 2026. Johnson, a federal correctional officer, is accused of sexually assaulting at least one inmate on more than one occasion.
Photo by Nina Pullano
A federal prison employee accused of sexually assaulting at least one prisoner at Brooklyn’s Metropolitan Detention Center averted possible detention at the same facility following his Wednesday arrest.
James Johnson, 36, worked at the MDC as a correctional officer and mentor coordinator. According to prosecutors, he forced a male detainee to perform oral sex on him on two occasions and attempted to have penetrative sex with him. Johnson faces two counts related to the alleged assaults and a third accusing him of lying to federal agents about the incidents after his DNA was found on the victim’s prison jumpsuit.
He was released on $100,000 unsecured bond to be signed by his father and a second to-be-named suretor, possibly a sibling.
Charging papers describe Johnson as directing the victim prisoner to accompany him to the jail’s chaplain offices in May 2025, then directing him to perform oral sex while the two were hidden behind a stack of chairs. “The defendant also attempted to have sexual intercourse with John Doe, but John Doe refused; and the defendant was unable to do so,” one court filing says.
James Johnson, 36, leaves Brooklyn federal court on March 18, 2026. Johnson, a federal correctional officer, is accused of sexually assaulting at least one inmate on more than one occasion. Photo by Nina Pullano
During a second incident, Johnson allegedly told the prisoner to leave his unit and took him to a remote area of the jail where a similar assault took place. After that incident, according to law enforcement, the prisoner wiped Johnson’s semen on his prison jumpsuit, preserving DNA that later was found to be a match for the correctional officer.
In October 2025, while under investigation, “Johnson falsely stated and represented to an FBI agent and a [U.S. Department of Justice Office of the Inspector General] agent that he had not engaged in any sexual acts with any inmates at the MDC, when in fact, as Johnson then and there well knew and believed, he had engaged in multiple sexual acts with one or more inmates at the MDC.”
Neither Johnson nor his attorney had any comment on the charges following Wednesday’s appearance.