The A&E TV series "60 Days In" will send seven innocent people, including a police officer and a former gang member, to jail in Pinal County, AZ, this season.

For the new season, which premiers Thursday Jan. 3 at 10pm ET/PT, Sheriff Mark Lamb of the Pinal County (AZ) Sheriff’s Office carefully selected seven innocent people to go undercover for a deep dive into the inner workings of his facility, A&E says. Unlike in past seasons, the participants–including a police officer, a private investigator, and even an ex-Latin King turned minister–were given specific missions by the sheriff. In a jail with problems stemming from drugs, gangs and operational issues, Sheriff Lamb assigned separate objectives based on each individual’s skill sets and interests, in order to best help the facility uncover flaws, A&E says. 

Prior to going in, six of the participants met and trained with one another, leaving only one to enter on his own and operate as a “lone wolf” on the sheriff’s behalf. Throughout their time in jail, the participants faced growing suspicions and violent threats, but they were deeply committed to fulfilling their missions. In an unexpected turn, one rogue participant threatened to blow the whole program, leaving their fellow participants in an extremely dangerous position, according to A&E.

“60 Days In” is produced by Lucky 8 for A&E Network. Executive producers for Lucky 8 are Greg Henry, Kim Woodard, Keayr Braxton and Patrick Costello. Executive producers for A&E Network are Elaine Frontain Bryant, Shelly Tatro, Molly Ebinger and Brad Holcman. A&E holds worldwide distribution rights to “60 Days In.”