Drone Delivery Disrupted at South Carolina Prison
It seems someone is in for a bit of trouble.
A drone, loaded with ingredients for a festive crab boil along with jars of Old Bay seasoning, attempted a delivery over a South Carolina prison, perhaps in a misguided effort to brighten some inmates’ holiday season.
However, officers at the Lee Correctional Facility in Bishopville were prepared and intercepted the airborne package before it could reach its target. The package included steak, king crab legs, two hefty bags of marijuana, and two cartons of cigarettes.
“I imagine the inmates might have felt a bit uneasy about that,” quipped Christy Shein, communications director for the South Carolina Department of Corrections, in a conversation with the Post.
The delivery was intercepted just before it was scheduled to be dropped into a garden, prompting an investigation to track down both the drone pilot and the intended recipient. Along with the holiday feast, the recipients missed out on a carton each of Marlboro menthol and Lucky Strike cigarettes.
Shein mentioned that the contraband had been purchased from a Piggly Wiggly supermarket in Georgetown, which is about 130 miles away from the facility.
While this attempt at drone smuggling had a somewhat humorous twist, Shein highlighted that unmanned aircraft pose a serious and ongoing threat to prisons in the state. The Department of Corrections spends millions annually on counteracting the delivery of various contraband items, ranging from cell phones to methamphetamine and fentanyl.
“We’re battling drones night after night,” Shein stated, noting that certain drone models can carry as much as 30 pounds.
“Eventually, it’s only a matter of time before this technology could enable drones to facilitate even more serious escapes,” she added.
Drone operators often go to great lengths to camouflage their packages, sometimes hiding them under artificial grass to mimic trash or blend into the surroundings.
The issue has become so significant that the prison has established a dedicated drone team to monitor and tackle these aerial contraband attempts.
Yet Shane remarked that this particular surf and turf delivery was “quite unusual, even for us.”
