PRESIDENT of the Senior Uniformed Officers Association Superintendent Leslie Campbell, in guardedly acknowledging the success of measures to prevent contraband getting into the country’s prisons, says the age-old practice of civilians throwing illegal items over the walls of correctional facilities will not stop until prisons are relocated from inner-city communities.

“It is not something new; it has been happening ages, even before I joined the work, and I have been in the work 41 years now, and it has been happening long before that. Tower Street and St Catherine adult correctional [centres] are in volatile communities, and if you look at the one in St Catherine, people have almost built [homes] adjoining the walls of the prison.

“Tower Street is actually similar…an old hotel is right there next to the prison, and behind that you have some persons building close to the sentry box, and on the western side, persons build garage and houses there. So it is not new; sometimes persons ride bicycles and ride bikes, throw the things over the wall and speed off,” Campbell, a senior officer in the Custodial Division of the Department of Correctional Services told the Jamaica Observer on Sunday.

His comments come on the heels of a recent social media post on the pages of the Department of Correctional Services, reminding Jamaicans of the illegality of throwing prohibited articles over the walls of correctional centres while warning that “CCTV cameras will aid in your prosecution”.

Based on subsection (2) of the Corrections (Amendment) Act 2021, perpetrators can be fined up to $3 million, face prison time up to three years or experience both penalties. Prohibited articles include electronic communication device, intoxicating liquor, drugs, tobacco, money, clothing, provisions, letters, tools, or any article likely to be prejudicial to the life or safety of any person or to facilitate any escape from a correctional institution or to be used for purposes prejudicial to the discipline of such institutions, according to the Act.

Superintendent Leslie said cameras, while helpful, have not completely deterred individuals.

“This won’t stop until we move the facilities out of the ghetto areas. The cameras have been there, people still throw things over [the walls]. Sometimes they cover their faces, have on the hoody [hooded sweaters] and throw things and ride off, and there are correctional officers who are assisting them, too, but it is what it is until they get caught,” he told the Observer.

“Officers have been warned to stop, some of them are trying to make more money based on the fact that when they carry the things in, they get additional resources,” he pointed out.

He said the work of proactive prison officials has played a role in disrupting some of the illegal activities.

“At my institution, I found 15 parcels — some with compressed ganja, some with cellular phones — two Fridays ago, and we found a 12-inch screw driver, two cellphones and accessories; these things are really happening. Those cellphones didn’t walk in by themselves. We got intelligence so we got it before them. These things are happening. Contraband, prohibited articles are entering institutions by being thrown over the walls and some are being perpetrated by correctional officers,” Leslie said.

As to whether individuals are being caught and sanctioned, the superintendent said individuals from the Tower Street, South Camp, and St Catherine adult correctional facilities have been caught in recent times and convicted.

“It’s just time, but when these things happen we don’t hear it on the news,” the veteran told the Observer.

In August this year, National Security Minister Dr Horace Chang said the Government will be adding surveillance cameras to the arsenal of tools for policing correctional facilities.

“We have just concluded a contract to introduce a camera system, a more extensive system, in correctional facilities and build out the intelligence service within there,” Dr Chang told the
Observer on Monday during an emergency press briefing at Jamaica House.

He said the build-out of the surveillance infrastructure in the prisons will increase the gains made under the Corrections (Amendment) Act 2021, which was passed to enable tighter control of prohibited articles, such as electronic devices, being transported in and out of correctional facilities. According to data obtained from the Court Administration Division (CAD), between January 2021 and March 2024, 10 people have been charged and prosecuted, with six pleading guilty.

“The work is proceeding; we have a new director of corrections who has extensive experience in the security area and we are working with the entire correctional service to strengthen our intelligence product from the area as well as apply the law as required,” Chang said.

According to information contained on the website of the national security ministry, bidding documents were in July of 2023 issued for entities for the “supply, installation, commissioning, and maintenance of [a] CCTV surveillance system at the Horizon Adult Remand correctional facility” under the ministry’s Security Strengthening Project.

Bidding documents were also issued in March of this year for the “installation of fibre optic cables for the Jamaica Constabulary Force and the Department of Correctional Services high-priority sites and Ministry of National Security agencies” under the Security Strengthening Project.

According to the ministry’s website, the Security Strengthening Project is currently involved in deploying fibre optic cables and accessories across Kingston, St Andrew, St Catherine, and Clarendon. It said, “The primary goal of the project is to establish a robust fibre optic infrastructure, facilitating essential connectivity for applications focused on improving the conviction rate for murders in Jamaica.”