By Harve Jacobs | September 22, 2020 at 3:07 PM EDT - Updated September 22 at 8:39 PM
CHARLESTON, S.C. (WCSC) - A state prison inmate is being charged with making threatening phone cells and sending threatening text messages to a Lowcountry woman.
The inmate, 44-year-old Robert Dukes is serving a 15-year sentence for armed robbery at Lieber prison in Ridgeville in Dorchester County.
Christina Allen said she met Dukes online three years ago.
Allen said after doing a background check on Dukes she told him she didn’t want to see him anymore.
“I no longer wanted contact,” Allen said Tuesday.
A year later in 2018, Dukes was convicted of armed robbery and sent to Lieber prison.
Allen said not long after that she started getting the threatening calls and text messages from the inmate.
“There’s multiple phone calls, multiple voice mails, I mean it’s ridiculous,” Allen said.
Prison records show Dukes has been disciplined at least nine times for having a cell phone.
And each time he managed to get another phone to contact Allen.
“He has told me he will kill me, he will kill my family and friends, people I’m close to,” Allen said.
“I can’t enjoy a family function without turning off my phone. I can’t do course work for my college degree, the phone is constantly going off,” Allen said.
Allen filed several police reports with the Dorchester County Sheriff’s Office.
A spokesperson with the sheriff’s office said deputies filed a warrant for harassment against Dukes but prison officials never served him with the warrant.
The sheriff’s office told Allan to contact Live 5 to see if we could get something done at the prison.
Her biggest fear?
“Him getting out and coming after me,” Allen said. “I just want it to stop.”
A prison spokeswoman said Dukes will be charged with threatening to harm a member of the public and possibly other charges.
He’s also being placed in an area of Lieber prison where it will be more difficult for him to obtain a cellphone.
Federal law forbids state and local governments from jamming cell phone signals in state prisons.
Legislation has been drafted to allow blocking of those signals but the bill has yet to become law.
Dukes' scheduled release date from prison is June 2030.
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