A West Hempstead correction officer is accused of bringing contraband into the Nassau County jail. Find out what he allegedly smuggled.

A West Hempstead correction officer allegedly brought narcotics residue on the pages of a Bible into the Nassau County jail in East Meadow, where he worked, according to the county district attorney’s office.

Prosecutors said that 38-year-old Javel S. Welch brought a cellphone and the Bible into the jail. Welch was arrested on March 29. A search of his vehicle allegedly turned up a loaded semi-automatic pistol in the unlocked center console.

Welch was charged with a felony and two misdemeanors. The felony promoting prison contraband charge carries a maximum sentence of up to seven years in prison.

In court documents, Welch said he didn’t know that he could not bring his cellphone into the jail. The Bible, he said, was a gift from his mother five years ago.

“I keep my gun in my car, just in case I have to do a hospital run,” Welch said.

Cheryl Bartow, a Mineola lawyer who represented Welch at his arraignment last week, said investigators did not find drugs on Welch. “He was charged with drug residue, not actual drugs recovered,” Bartow said.

District Attorney Anne Donnelly said the arrest highlights the importance of maintaining safety in the jail. An inmate fatally overdosed last November, and in January, authorities saved an inmate who was overdosing.

“The health and safety of our correction officers and incarcerated individuals is paramount,” Donnelly said in a news release. “Illicit substances introduced into the jail population can create medical emergencies and further destabilize the facility.”

According to the D.A.’s office, no one — including staff — is permitted to bring a cellphone into the jail. “In the wrong hands, a cell phone in jail can become a tool for retribution, harassment, and violence,” Donnelly said in the release.

Welch was arrested March 29 when he arrived for work at the jail. The Internal Affairs Unit of the county Sheriff’s Department searched him and his backpack. A trained dog identified residue of the synthetic drug K2, according to the D.A.’s office.

K2 is a synthetic version of marijuana that contains THC, the psychoactive ingredient in marijuana. According to DEA.gov, K2 is dangerous because it is unregulated, and the amount of chemicals in the drug is unknown. “The ingredients and strength of products containing synthetic cannabinoids are almost impossible for the user to know,” the website states.

Welch was released on his own recognizance after his arrest, and was scheduled to return to court on April 6. He had been working as a probationary correctional officer since last April. The D.A.’s office said that he was suspended after his arrest.