Police confiscate 150 cell phones in prisons

Brandenburg inmates are increasingly succeeding in smuggling mobile phones into prison cells. Last year, 150 illegal cell phones were secured. A significant increase compared to the year before. In some cases, JVA employees are the cell phone smugglers.

In Brandenburg prisons, around 150 illegal cell phones jammer were seized last year. In the previous year there were 109, as the Ministry of Justice announced on Wednesday on request. Often the cell phones were smuggled in by prisoners after the exit. Visitors also “provided” inmates with the forbidden phones.

In two cases, the suspicion was confirmed that staff had smuggled in cell phones. In a few more cases, the investigation is still ongoing.

One of the confiscated cell phone is also part of Maurice M. He has been convicted of murder of the then 14-year-old Alyssa from Eichwalde. Since 22 June, the judgment is final. At the beginning of 2015, M. found a mobile phone in the cell. He used it mainly to look at porn pictures.

CDU politician calls for mobile blocker and better controls

The legal-political spokesman for the CDU parliamentary group, Danny Eichelbaum, accused the Ministry of Justice of failing. It was unacceptable that detainees in the country’s prisons continued using their mobile phones to carry out their criminal activities. The use of mobile phone blockers must be checked more, the visitor checks should be increased.

According to the ministry, detectors are being used in the institutions to detect banned cell phones. A prison – whose name is not announced – is currently testing a facility to interfere with unauthorized mobile communications.