In ‘Drone Pandemic’, drugs, guns and mobile phones are smuggled into Kingston Prison

Hundreds of drones smuggling drugs, guns and cell phones flew over coiled barbed wire and high concrete walls at the Collins Bay Institution in Kingston, Ontario, in recent years.

The frequency of flights has grown steadily since 2018, with 99 flights last year alone, according to statistics obtained by CBC through access to information (ATIP) laws.

That’s nearly 10 times the number recorded five years ago, evidence of a growing problem across the country. Correctional workers union officials are describing this as a “pandemic” that puts inmates and staff at risk.

“For me, it’s an emergency,” said Jeff Wilkins, national president of the Union of Canadian Correctional Officers.

“We are talking about a serious threat to health and safety.”

The union has been concerned about dropping drones for more than a decade, the president said, but they don’t have the resources necessary to deal with the problem. instead of installing radar or intermediate solutions.

“In Collins Bay things are getting out of hand,” said Chris Bucholtz, the union’s regional president in Ontario, adding that he believes CSC’s numbers understate the issue.

The value of 1 drop can be $100,000

A few requests for access to information submitted by CBC reveal the magnitude of the problem.

Initial shows there were at least 247 drone drops in Collins Bay between 2018 and 2022. That’s compared to a total of 60 during the same period at the three other federal correctional facilities in the Kingston area.

A separate ATIP provided information on contraband seized in Collins Bay from January 1, 2020 to December 31, 2022.

During that time, there were about 600 drug-related seizures and 250 gun seizures, according to a CSC summary.

“Incident reports suggest that most of the contraband brought into the facility was via unmanned aerial vehicles (drones),” it notes, adding that the institutional value for the material seized each year runs into the millions.

“To put this in perspective, the content of a single UAV package introduced to the institution could have an institutional value of $100,000,” the executive summary reads.

Collins Bay in the top 2 sites for drops: union

Bucholtz describes the situation as a “drone pandemic.”

Payloads include cell phones, drugs, and ceramic blades that can cut through protective vests. Big declines are followed by a spike in violence and overdoses felt by both inmates and correctional officers, he said.

With its turrets, towers and bright red roof, Collins Bay is sometimes ironically compared to the castle at Disneyland, although life inside is no fairytale. First opened in 1930, the facility now houses minimum, medium, and maximum security areas with capacity for 760 prisoners.

Bucholtz said he believes its location within Kingston’s city limits, surrounded by fields and marshes, is part of the reason it’s so popular with drone pilots.

Wilkins, the union’s national president, said it is one of the top two locations in Canada for UAV activity.

CSC said the radar would be in place by 2022

Drones are also a big problem at the Donnacona Institute just west of Quebec City, the only location working to install and test drone detection technology, the union said.

That’s despite a commitment from CSC to spend $6 million by March 2022 installing radar at six facilities, including Collins Bay.

CSC did not agree to an interview. In a statement to CBC, it did not immediately respond to questions about the prevalence of drone drops in Collins Bay or the status of its plan to install drone detection technology.

The agency said it has taken “counter-drone measures” at “many” institutions but declined to give details of where or what they entail, citing “safety and security reasons”.

CSC said it continues to work with suppliers on ways to detect drones in its airspace.

“Once in operation, we will measure the performance of these systems and determine the potential for wider, national implementation,” the statement said.

Huge reward, low cost

Detection technology has been around for years and is growing along with the popularity of drones, according to Peter Jones, president of Version 2 from Ottawa.

The company equips places like airports and military bases with the ability to find out what’s flying over them. Units range from $30,000 to $50,000.

Jones said the approach tracks drones based on radio signals and can determine where the UAV is, which direction it is traveling and what its history is.

Drones are hard to see with the naked eye, he explained, so installing technology to assist is the “most basic solution” and will help catch 80 to 90 percent of them.

Jones said a correctional facility is a tempting target because the risk of losing a drone is outweighed by the potential payoff.

“A drone that can bring in a payload…could cost as little as $500 and maybe go up to $1,500,” he said. “There’s probably a huge reward for a relatively low cost.”

Wilkins said the union has been told the detection technology in Donnacona is working, although it is still in a pilot phase.

He added that there is no reason why it cannot be expanded to other institutions across the country, but much more than $6 million is needed if CSC is serious about stopping the problem.

Given the lengthy procurement process and the number of years the union has been asking for help fighting UAVs, the chairman is not optimistic.

“Our fear is that by the time these are implemented in the institutions, the technology will change so much that they could be useless,” he said.

Delivery right to cell window

In the meantime, the union has been working with prison staff at drone hotspots on interim low-tech solutions, including nets over training grounds and stronger windows.

“Believe it or not, these drones deliver directly to windows in some cases,” Wilkins said, explaining that inmates smashed them to receive drop-offs directly from their cells, similar to fast food delivery.

Collins Bay correctional officers are informally tracking the number of broken windows and have found 23 so far this year, according to the union.

Union officials said drones are so widespread that it calls for dedicated staff in addition to the usual back-up — particularly to keep an eye on the skies.

Unless CSC makes some immediate changes, the problem will only continue to escalate, Wilkins said.

“At this point, I have no doubt that there is someone out there who develops a package, assembles a drone or flies one in an institution,” he said.

“It’s so common now. It’s daily across the country.”