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Man who hid guns in unfinished Nashville jail convicted of vandalism

The downtown detention center is the first stop for Davidson County, Tenn., detainees. The facility was dedicated in 2020.
DCSO
The downtown detention center is the first stop for Davidson County, Tenn., detainees. The facility was dedicated in 2020.

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — A Tennessee jury has found a prominent prison reform advocate guilty of vandalism after he disguised himself as a construction worker to hide guns, handcuff keys and hacksaw blades inside the walls of an under-construction Nashville jail.

Alex Friedmann was found guilty Thursday of vandalism over $250,000 in a case that a prosecutor likened to something out of a Hollywood movie.

Much of it was caught on surveillance video and went undisputed.

The prosecutor also said the case ends on a cliffhanger, left only to guess about what Friedmann planned to do. He didn’t testify at trial.

Defense attorneys argued the state was overcharging Friedmann through its calculation of damages.

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