Agbaosi, Mark

Tenure Summary

Mark Agbaosi began his GDC career as a correctional officer at Georgia Diagnostic and Classification State Prison (GDCP) in 2010, rising steadily through sergeant, lieutenant, captain, unit manager, and deputy warden before being appointed Warden of Dooly State Prison on February 16, 2025. GPS records show he held accountability-tier positions — unit supervisor or above — continuously from 2017 onward, spending the bulk of that time at GDCP. Across his two facility-lead or facility-deputy postings where deaths are recorded, GPS records attribute 75 deaths during his tenure: 57 at GDCP while he served as Deputy Warden (2023–2024), and 18 at Dooly State Prison while he has served as Warden (2025–present, through January 2026). Three civil lawsuits name him or facilities under his command. GPS records also note that Agbaosi was appointed Warden without a bachelor's degree, a credential GPS records flag as a departure from standard qualification expectations.

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What Happened on Their Watch

Georgia Diagnostic and Classification State Prison — Deputy Warden (2023–2024)

Agbaosi held the Deputy Warden role at GDCP from January 2023 through December 2024. GPS records attribute 57 deaths at the facility during that window. The overwhelming majority — 54 of 57 — carry cause category 6 (unspecified/other). Three are recorded as homicides (cause category 3): Carrell D. Johnson, 32, who died June 6, 2023, with a cause of death listed as "chopping injuries of the head and sharp-force injuries of the torso," per the AJC Georgia Prison Homicides Investigation; Elmer W. Pless, 65, who died May 15, 2023, cause of death listed as strangulation, per the same AJC investigation; and Daniel Charriez, 46, whose February 23, 2022 death — recorded under his prior unit manager role — is attributed to "delayed complications of traumatic brain injury, four-month interval," also per the AJC. The AJC separately reported that GDCP had been nearly entirely vandalized by prisoners, with widespread infrastructure failures. Intel reports from the AJC allege that a corrections officer, Vera Jackson, admitted to receiving thousands of dollars to provide a death row inmate with advance notice of shakedowns and staff movements. A separate AJC report alleges that a newly convicted inmate possessed a homemade shank and contraband cellphone within days of arriving at GDCP, indicating serious security failures. The AJC also reported that 35 cellphones were seized from one inmate, David "Toro" Zavala, at the time of his guilty plea. GPS records further note that GDCP held approximately 4,540 incarcerated people as of January 2026 — 568% of its original 1968 design capacity of 800 — with medical, kitchen, shower, and counseling infrastructure unchanged since original construction. An AJC report alleges that Charles Lee Broady Jr. was attacked by six gang members with razor blades after requesting protective custody, and that his request was not honored. Brandon Trace Burrell, 31, who died January 28, 2024, was allegedly assaulted by another inmate while under the effects of methamphetamine, suffering numerous stab wounds, per the AJC.

Dooly State Prison — Warden (February 16, 2025–present)

Agbaosi assumed the Warden role at Dooly State Prison on February 16, 2025. GPS records attribute 18 deaths at the facility during his tenure through January 2026. Of those, three are recorded as homicides (cause category 3): Joshua Parrott, 45, died January 12, 2025 — cause listed as "homicide due to strangulation" per GPS records; Horario Philmore, 58, died February 2, 2025 — GPS records note the death was officially classified as a suicide, but inmate reports allege strangulation; and Darrow Brown, 58, died November 7, 2025 — a user report in GPS records alleges he was killed on the facility walkway while being escorted by an officer, by a member of the Crips gang, and that Brown was unaffiliated. Two deaths carry cause category 5 (natural/drug-related): Timothy Glenn Williams, 56, died April 17, 2025, with GPS records noting "Natural/Drug OD"; and Samuel Jacob Blackmon, 40, died January 19, 2026. The remaining 13 deaths carry cause category 6. GPS records document a sustained pattern of violent incidents at Dooly during Agbaosi's tenure: multiple stabbings in March and April 2026 across G2, F2, and D building housing units, with at least two Life Flights dispatched on April 1–3, 2026, and five to six inmates hospitalized in separate gang-related fights on March 23 and April 3, 2026. The AJC alleges that a coroner found that one inmate, Carlos Omar Soldiew-Acosta, may have been dead for more than 24 hours before his body was discovered at Dooly. Georgia Public Broadcasting reports that a family member alleges medical staff at Dooly put his father's treatment "on the back burner," contributing to a death from sepsis. The AJC separately alleges that James Yarbrough suffered from uncontrolled diabetes for months at Dooly and died of ketoacidosis in a case alleging medical malpractice. A corrections officer cadet, Julius Deshawn Williams Jr., pleaded guilty in December 2025 to possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine after allegedly attempting to smuggle 640 grams of pure methamphetamine into Dooly, per WGXA. WALB reports allege that an incarcerated person, Abraham Rivas, operated a phone fraud scheme from inside Dooly and that correctional staff were allegedly aware of inmates running such schemes. GPS records report that Dooly holds 1,593 people in a facility designed for 750 — 212% of design capacity — with a statewide correctional officer vacancy rate of approximately 50%.

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Litigation

• Robertson v. Agbaosi, No. 1:25-cv-00050 (GAMD), filed February 25, 2025 — pending; no outcome amount reported. (CourtListener)
• Thrift v. Caldwell, No. 5:24-cv-00002 (GAMD), filed January 2, 2024 — pending; no outcome amount reported. (CourtListener)
• Miller v. Holt, No. 5:25-cv-00356 (GAMD), filed August 25, 2025 — pending; no outcome amount reported. (CourtListener)

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Sources

• GPS records — deaths-during-tenure data, position history, intel event logs, and user-submitted incident reports for GDCP and Dooly State Prison
• Atlanta Journal-Constitution — Georgia Prison Homicides Investigation (homicide cause-of-death details for Johnson, Pless, Charriez, Williams/Boyd); reporting on GDCP infrastructure failures; reporting on Broady gang attack; reporting on Zavala cellphone seizure; reporting on Tassi contraband; reporting on Yarbrough medical death at Dooly; reporting on prison system overcrowding
• Georgia Public Broadcasting — reporting on DOJ deliberate-indifference findings and family allegation regarding sepsis death at Dooly State Prison
• WGXA — reporting on Julius Deshawn Williams Jr. guilty plea for methamphetamine smuggling at Dooly
• WALB — reporting on Abraham Rivas phone fraud scheme operated from Dooly State Prison
• 13WMAZ — reporting on gang-related fight injuring five inmates at Dooly State Prison
• CourtListener — docket records for Robertson v. Agbaosi (1:25-cv-00050), Thrift v. Caldwell (5:24-cv-00002), Miller v. Holt (5:25-cv-00356)

Synthesized by GPS Intelligence System on May 10, 2026 from positions, attributed deaths, lawsuits, intel reports, and news mentions in the public corpus. The supporting data tables follow below.