Single Canadian Prison Sees Nearly 100 Illegal Drone Deliveries in 2022

The threat of drones smuggling drugs, weapons, and other contraband into prisons is on the rise.

Jack Daleo

Friday, June 23, 2023 at 04:47 PM ET

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Drones increasingly are being used to deliver contraband, such as drugs, into prisons. [Courtesy: Pixabay]

Key Takeaways:

Drones have become a rapidly escalating security threat to prisons in both Canada and the U.S., effectively bypassing traditional defenses to deliver contraband like drugs, weapons, and cell phones.
Incidents of drone-facilitated contraband delivery have sharply increased, with one Canadian prison seeing nearly 100 drops in 2022, and such deliveries now account for an estimated three-quarters of drug seizures in Canadian prisons.
Correctional services face significant challenges in combating this issue, including the rapid advancement of drone technology, budget limitations for detection systems, and a complex legal environment in the U.S.
Official statistics on drone incidents are widely believed to be significantly underreported, obscuring the true scope of this "emergency" impacting prison safety and security.

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Prison security measures, such as massive walls, barbed wire fortifications, and heavy steel doors, generally suffice to prevent inmates from getting out. They also used to be great at keeping drugs and other contraband from getting in—until recently.

According to statistics from Correctional Service Canada (CSC), obtained by the Canadian Broadcasting Corp. via a pair of access-to-information requests (the Canadian analog to the U.S. Freedom of Information Act), a single Ontario prison saw nearly 100 drones deliver drugs, weapons, cell phones, and other contraband to inmates in 2022.