New Mexico Corrections Department Secretary Gregg Marcantel has ordered a lockdown of the state's 11 prisons as part of an unannounced hunt for contraband.
The department announced the lockdown Monday and said staff would search every housing unit and review conditions of buildings.
Marcantel says the lockdown was part of periodic reviews aimed at safety and reducing recidivism rates.
In recent months, correction officials says inmates and their families have tried to smuggle Suboxone into prisons using various methods such as on the back of stamps or children's coloring books.
Officials say the lockdown will be lifted once all facilities have been inspected.
All visits will be canceled until lockdown ends. Officials say no end date has been decided.
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