Kitchen manager Duan Blackston may have been able to whip up a mean spaghetti dinner at a regional jail in New Kent County, but he’s now accused of trying to smuggle contraband behind bars. A contract worker for a canteen service, Blackston is facing a hearing next week in Henrico County on charges of attempting to smuggle cigarettes and drugs into the jail, Henrico Regional Jail East. Jail space is shared by New Kent, Henrico and Goochland.

A plan to build a $100 million regional jail for Brunswick, Dinwiddie and Mecklenburg counties would alleviate the need for inmate space in all three localities dealing with overcrowded and inadequate local jails, local officials said. The regional jail, which has been in the planning stages for nearly four years and was originally estimated to cost $150.2 million, will help the counties save money and will make the jail system more efficient in all three jurisdictions.