Want to contact Mahdi directly? Read on to learn how!

You can communicate with Mahdi too! Read on for more info.

Hi there - Nic Hallanger here. It dawned on me that there may be people out there that want to communicate directly with Mahdi while he is incarcerated. If you want to send Mahdi a message of support, images, text, short videos, etc you can do so by creating a JPay account and either using the JPay website or the JPay App. Having grown up around technology and working in IT I realized that things that might be easy for me aren't always easy for others so I wanted to write up some basic instructions on how to communicate with someone incarcerated in a Minnesota Correctional Facility.

1. If you plan to use your smartphone to communicate with Mahdi, you need to install the JPAY app on your phone (or use the web browser, but the app is slightly easier to navigate on a phone). You can get this from either the Google Play store or the Apple App Store on your phone. Links:

   1. Android: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.brisk.jpay&hl=en

   2. Apple: https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/jpay/id584959322?mt=8

   3. If using a computer or you want to try without the App go to: https://jpay.com
      

2. Open the app or website and add Mahdi as a contact. On the website this happens on the main landing page. Select Minnesota for the State then enter Mahdi's OID# which is 236437 and click next.
   

   

3. Click or tap to select Mahdi on the next screen:
   

   

4. Register for a new account by filling out the information required in these boxes:
   

   

5. You will likely be prompted to validate the account in some way (maybe clicking an email link) at this point. After you are situated with your account you can log in and start communicating with Mahdi. Below is a screenshot that shows the most common options used in JPay to send email messages, money, and how to add additional incarcerated people if needed.
   

   

Communicating with the outside world is key to preventing recidivism and makes a huge impact on an incarcerated person's mental health. I've found that communicating with incarcerated people has taught me a tremendous amount about the world and people that aren't exactly like me. Having a prison pen pal is a great way to feel less lonely and it also benefits the person inside prison too.