Federal prosecutors in Georgia have charged 23 individuals, many of whom are current or former inmates, in connection with alleged schemes involving the smuggling of drugs and cellphones into state prisons using drones. Indictments in two separate cases were made public by the U.S. District Court after being issued by a grand jury the previous month. These indictments claim that inmates utilized illicit cellphones to coordinate drone deliveries with individuals outside the correctional facilities.
According to a statement from U.S. Attorney Jill Steinberg’s office, drones were utilized to drop marijuana, methamphetamine, and illegal phones into the grounds of Smith State Prison, Telfair State Prison, and other facilities over a span of five years beginning in 2019. The defendants are all facing federal drug charges, with the majority of them having been incarcerated at some point during the smuggling operations detailed in the indictments.
The indictments outlined communications, including text messages and Facebook exchanges, between the defendants, featuring aerial photos of prisons and images of packages in vacuum-sealed bags. One message from an inmate in August 2021 indicated logistical details such as the need to wait until after dark for a delivery. Another message from January 2023 discussed the possibility of dividing deliveries between two drone batteries.
During the investigations related to drone smuggling, authorities confiscated 10 drones and 21 firearms. The two prisons mentioned in these cases have faced challenges in recent years, with reports of inmate violence and corruption. In March, the warden at Telfair State Prison was attacked by an inmate using a homemade weapon during a contraband search, though the warden sustained minor injuries. An inquiry into contraband at Smith State Prison led to the eventual arrest and dismissal of Warden Brian Adams in February 2023. Tragically, two staff members have lost their lives at the prison, one in an assault last October and the other in a shooting carried out by an inmate who then took his own life in June.
