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Morganton corrections officer recovering after stabbed with 'shank'

MORGANTON, N.C. — A corrections officer at Foothills Correctional Institution in Morganton is recovering from an assault by an inmate Saturday night.

North Carolina Department of Public Safety officials said it happened around 9:30 p.m.

The officer suffered multiple stab wounds from a homemade "shank" and was taken to the hospital for treatment.

A former corrections officer who worked at the prison spoke with Channel 9 Sunday.

"I was shocked. That's a lot, but I know it can happen at the drop of a hat," said the person who asked not to be identified. "It's not the first time assaults been done."

The former officer said shanks have long been a safety problem at all jails.

"Very easily to come by in there," the former officer explained. "A toothbrush - sharpen it down on the concrete of their cell - use it for a shank. It's really easy to do."

Officials said the inmate involved - Jose Rios - faces assault charges. The officer's name has not been released.

“Rios has a history of assaultive and threatening behavior as evidenced by the crime that landed him in prison and the rules infractions he has been charged with since his incarceration. I appreciate the prompt response of the other prison staff who came to the officer’s aid and we are all hopeful the officer, who remains in stable condition, will be released from the hospital very soon," said Prisons Director Kenneth Lassiter in a statement Monday.

Rios is serving time for killing two people whose bodies were found in a Gaston County home in 2016.

Rios has also been accused of attacking a jailer in Gaston county a year after his arrest. Since then, he's accumulated six infractions from gang activity to threatening to harm and injure staff.

Last fall, four employees were killed during an escape attempt at Pasquotank Correctional Institution in Elizabeth City. And an officer was attacked there earlier this month.

Prosecutors say they want the death penalty for an inmate accused of beating to death an officer at Bertie Correctional Institution last year.

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