Mobile phones, drugs or weapons can be smuggled behind bars or the situation can be scouted out using drones. Overflights in the immediate vicinity of prisons are therefore prohibited.
Dresden (dpa / sn) - Drone sightings over prisons have so far been rare in Saxony. According to the Ministry of Justice, two incidents were observed on the premises of a prison in 2020, 2021 and 2022. In five cases, these were unauthorized overflights. In one of them, a package was dropped over the grounds of a correctional facility (JVA). Inside were two mobile phones and a SIM card.
The first documented drone flight over a prison in the Free State dates from 2019. In such a case, the police are asked to identify the person controlling the device, said a ministry spokeswoman. The JVA should then report it. If the drone pilot can be identified, administrative offense proceedings are initiated - and criminal proceedings are initiated if a criminal offense is suspected.
According to the ministry, drones can also be misused to drop illegal objects such as weapons, cell phones or narcotics over prisons or to take pictures of security installations, prisoners or staff. In the course of this, special security measures for prisoners would be ordered. Because of the low number of such incidents so far, no investments have been made in expensive technical systems to intercept drones.
