Drones could fly deadly items into prisons

drone. Police said several nighttime missions earned the three perpetrators about $6,000 per drop.

“The threat posed by drones to introduce contraband into prison and for other means is increasing,” said Justin Long, a spokesman for the Bureau of Prisons.

Long said the agency works with the Department of Justice and other law enforcement agencies to develop countermeasures to keep dangerous contraband out of jails, including those smuggled in via drone.

Jail management consultant Donald Leach said smugglers could be discouraged by introducing anti-drone jammers, which disable the signals on the flying objects, and a digital protective shield, which would alert facilities to the presence of nearby drones.

In the United Kingdom, at least one prison has deployed a system that deflects any drone that might fly over perimeter walls by sending a series of sensors to jam the drone’s computer and block its frequency, Leach said.

Leach, who worked as a jail administrator for 25 years, said drones sneaking in contraband pose a greater threat than other methods of bringing banned items into jails.

“Traditionally, some inmates would bribe the staff or visitors to bring drugs and other small items into jail illegally by hiding them in body cavities,” he said. “But drones have opened up the possibility of transporting much bigger and much more lethal items like guns.”

Though the Federal Aviation Administration and some states have taken steps to restrict drones’ activities over sensitive sites in recent years, Rule said more needs to be done.

“The FAA lacks the resources to craft and enforce laws that could effectively manage these risks in every town and city in the country, so states and local input and resources are crucial,” he said.

A pending Senate bill, the Drone Federalism Act, would encourage local legislation if passed, Rule said.

“It would give states and municipalities the green light to begin adopting and enforcing many of their own drone laws,” he said.