the thing we do here is we put the magnet inside the hiding spot. we break the soap so you can fix it like you have to take more time but right now i m just showing you. cardenas then gently peels small strips of paint off the wall. we peel that off a little bit. then he moistens the paint with water. because this paint is based on water, so the water make it stick. and then you put some paint on top of the soap like this. but then, you know. so you go like that a little bit and you have the wall covered up. it s like doing a tunnel. that s what the mexicans do. while cardenas uses stealth
knowing that some of their peers have less than ideal hygiene, many inmates at san antonio s bexar county jail do all they can to make their cells as sanitary as possible, especially raymond diaz. are you surprised that 75% people have better hygiene habits. diaz who is awaiting trial and has pled not guilty to charges of theft, burglary and cocaine possession says cleanliness, or the lack of it, can also lead to conflict. that s a big part of being locked up. you know, there s people who get dropped, beat up, because they don t keep things clean. diaz s cell mate, marcelo cardenas, who is convicted of aggravated assault, and is awaiting transfer to prison to begin a six-year sentence, is happy to indulge him. he jokes i have an obsessive compulsive disorder.
they will find any little small opening that they know you won t find and they will put all of their contraband in there. hiding anything in jail where every area is subject to inspection at any time takes determination and creativity. just ask marcelo cardenas. this is one of the spots that we use for to hide the guns, the tattoo guns. i m just right now making one. cardenas, who is sharing his secrets because he is soon leaving for state prison and says he is not worried about punishment, has a clever technique for hiding his homemade tattoo guns. the process begins with another piece of contraband. a box hinge. this is my tool that we use to break the wall in by literally scratching it. in this case, since the hole is still small, cardenas demonstrates how he uses a bar of soap to conceal one of the magnets used in his guns, rather than the gun itself.
a catch like this is pretty rare. was a good catch, man. right here is from inside of a light, a staple. this right here is the same copper wire that came from the inside of the hair clippers and two checkers pieces to hold it together. these guys know what they re doing. another inmate marcelo cardenas is not a tattoo artist but has gained a reputation for crafting high-quality jailhouse tattoo guns. i rent the gun or i sell it, it goes for $30, $25 or $30 in this county right here. because he is due to leave the jail any day now to start his six-year prison sentence for assault, cardenas agreed to demonstrate how it s done. right now it s not like i really care about it. if they run me out, i m going to leave before they do punishment or the reprimand on me. cardenas starts with some wire scavenged from some electric hair clippers. we rub the wire like this here.
the thing we do here is we put the magnet inside the hiding spot. we break the soap so you can fix it like you have to take more time but right now i m just showing you. cardenas then gently peels small strips of paint off the wall. we peel that off a little bit. then he moistens the paint with water. because this paint is based on water, so the water make it stick. and then you put some paint on top of the soap like this. but then, you know. so you go like that a little bit and you have the wall covered up. it s like doing a tunnel. that s what the mexicans do.