SMUGGLERS – including a former police officer – who used drones to drop drugs and other contraband items into a prison near Rugby have been sentenced.
Drones containing prohibited items were ‘flown-to-order’ into HMP Onley – and also into HMP Gartree in Leicestershire – throughout 2021 and 2022.
A police investigation uncovered that the packages inside the drones contained Class A and B drugs, tobacco, mobile phones and other contraband.
One package, recovered by a prison officer patrolling the grounds in August 2021, contained heroin with a prison value of £22,400 and cannabis with a prison value of £15,300.
Peter King, 53, previously of Wolverhampton; former Staffordshire Police detective constable Clare Davenport, 52, of Staffordshire; Kent George, 63, previously of Milton Keynes; and Mervyn Foster, 46, previously of Wolverhampton were identified as suspects and subsequently arrested.
At Coventry Crown Court last August, King pleaded guilty to conspiring to bring/throw/convey a List A prohibited article into/out of a prison, conspiring to bring/throw/convey a List B prohibited article into/out of a prison, and conspiring to acquire/use/possess criminal property.
Kent and Foster were found guilty of the same offences following a trial which ended at Coventry Crown Court last September.
Davenport pleaded guilty at Coventry Crown Court in August to conspiring to acquire/use/possess criminal property.
At Wolverhampton Crown Court, King was jailed for six years and six months, George for five years and six months, Foster for seven years and three months, and Davenport for two years – suspended for two years – and 150 hours of unpaid work.
A gross misconduct hearing held by Staffordshire Police in 2023 concluded that Davenport would have been dismissed if she had not already retired.
The investigation, by Northamptonshire Police’s Serious and Organised Crime Team and the East Midlands Special Operations Unit, was led by Det Sgt Gareth Askew.
He said: “This was a sophisticated operation that sought to exploit technology to undermine the safety and stability of our prison system.
“These individuals showed a complete disregard for the law and the harm that drugs and other contraband cause within custodial environments.
“Through a detailed and determined investigation, we were able to identify those responsible and bring them before the courts.
“Let this case send a clear message to anyone thinking of engaging in similar behaviour – we will identify you, we will investigate you, and you will face serious consequences. No matter how sophisticated you believe your methods are, you are not beyond our reach.
“This was a very complex investigation involving a number of agencies and I am really pleased that not only did we stop these drone drops from happening, but that the people responsible have been brought to justice.”
Lord Timpson, the Minister for Prisons, Probation and Reducing Reoffending, said: “Criminals who think they can exploit our prisons from the sky should be in no doubt – we will track you down and you will face the full force of the law. I thank our prison staff and policing partners for their work on this operation and bringing those responsible to justice.
“Smuggling drugs and weapons into jails doesn’t just break the law, it undermines the rehabilitation of prisoners and puts lives at risk. That’s why we are backing our hard-working and diligent staff who help bring these criminals to justice with a £40million security investment including new anti-drone measures to crack down on contraband entering our prisons.”
