Latest news with #detentioncentres
CBC
16-06-2025
- CBC
Why drones pose such a challenge in Quebec detention centres
On any given day, drones buzz in the skies above Quebec's detention centres looking to drop tobacco, drugs or cellphones to the inmates below. Statistics from Quebec's public security minister show staff reported 274 drones flying over provincial centres between January and March — or just over three per day. That doesn't include the 10 federally-managed prisons in the province. Corrections spokespeople and a drone expert say the problem is growing, dangerous and hard to stop, despite millions of dollars invested by provincial and federal governments. Stéphane Blackburn, the managing director for Quebec's correctional services, described the threat of airborne contraband as "something we face every day." The provincial figures show 195 of the 247 drones were seen dropping packages. Most of them — 69 per cent — were reported as seized. The province also seized 896 cellphones. But the data shows drone sightings have been growing gradually in recent years. There were 695 drone sightings logged from April 2021 to the end of March of 2022. For the same period between 2024 and 2025, there were 1,175. They're also increasingly being spotted outside Montreal. "A few years ago, it was mainly in the metropolitan region that we saw drone events," Blackburn said. "Montreal has been subjected to the problems for several years now, and now we see a rise in drone events in certain regions." WATCH | How Quebec is trying to keep drug-smuggling drones out of its jails: How Quebec is trying to keep drug-smuggling drones out of its jails 20 days ago Duration 2:33 Blackburn says the most common forms of contraband are tobacco and cannabis, although cellphones, tools and other drugs are also seized. In recent weeks, the province has announced an additional $38.5 million worth of measures aimed at curbing contraband smuggling. Those include technological solutions such as drone and cellphone detectors, and physical infrastructure including fencing or netting around windows and courtyards. Workers will also be using mobile X-ray scanners and body scanners to detect items once they've been delivered. The federal government also announced a pilot project in March that will allow correctional staff to use radio-frequency jammers to block wireless communication to drones and cellphones in federal and Quebec detention centres. Frédérick Lebeau, the national president of the Union of Canadian Correction officers, said the rise in drone drops in correctional facilities has been "exponential" in recent years. "We can talk about several drops a day — three, four, it depends," he said. He said drops happen often when inmates are in the yard, and packages are quickly snapped up and hidden in body cavities or elsewhere. Sometimes, drones are flown directly to windows where inmates have dismantled the bars. He said the presence of contraband — including drugs and weapons — can create debts among inmates and allow criminal networks to operate, resulting in increased violence for detainees and corrections staff alike. "It's really an ecosystem," he said. "If there are more debts, there's more violence. If there's more drinking, more drugs, there's violent (incidents) where we have to intervene." Lebeau said that while new announcements by the different levels of government are "a step forward," many of the measures have only been put in place in a few institutions. In particular, he says there's a need for more jammers to stop drones from reaching jails and prisons, as well as body scanners to catch the drugs once they're dropped. "It's not just detecting drones, we have to catch them," he said. WATCH | Drugs are flying into prisons. Why aren't inmates facing more punishment? Drones are flying drugs into prisons, but the inmates involved face little punishment 5 months ago Duration 2:14 The case of a convicted drug trafficker whose online drug-selling platform was connected to the death of a Quebec teen has some calling for stronger actions against inmates who commit crimes while in prison. They are 'ubiquitous,' expert says Jeremy Laliberté, a professor of mechanical and aerospace engineering at Ottawa's Carleton University, says drones are an ideal tool for delivering contraband because they're "ubiquitous, inexpensive," and can be launched from kilometres away. "The folks who want to do this can buy them for a few hundred dollars, modify them, remove any identifying information and launch them and not even worry about getting them back," he said. He said the war in Ukraine — as well as domestic concerns about malicious operators — have spurred a growing interest in counter-drone technology, including better detectors that can locate both the drone and the operator. However, these systems are expensive and complex to develop, while "the drones themselves are hundreds of dollars." Laliberté said physical barriers such as fencing and netting as well as the detectors, jammers, and scanners can all work to protect detention centres, though he notes determined operators can find a way around any one measure. That's why he says a layered model that combines different strategies — the so-called "Swiss cheese model" — has the best chance of success. "There isn't going to be just one strategy that's going to be the magic bullet that stops everything," he said. "It's going to have to be a mix of things, because the technology, it's like an arms race. There's always going to be people trying to get better at this."
CBC
26-05-2025
- CBC
Quebec unveils measures to curb drug-smuggling drones in detention centres
Social Sharing Quebec Public Security Minister François Bonnardel announced a series of measures to boost safety in the province's detention centres after drones have been used to smuggle drugs into jails. Between January and March, 274 drones were observed flying near jails — 195 of them carried packages, according to the ministry's statistics, and 134 packages were seized. "We've made huge strides on several fronts to prevent drone delivery of packages, detect contraband entering our facilities and secure entrances," Bonnardel told reporters on Monday at the Rivière-des-Prairies detention centre. To prevent drones from delivering packages to inmates, Bonnardel said fences will be installed above and around their windows in the coming months. These structures have proven to be "very effective" after being tested in some detention centres, Bonnardel noted. The second measure of the government's plan includes installing body scanners to detect objects that might be concealed in inmates' body cavities upon entry. All inmates will also be scanned before they return to their sleeping quarters. Those suspected by correctional officers of carrying objects will also undergo scanning. According to the minister, it's "a first" in Quebec. WATCH | The case of a convicted drug trafficker caught smuggling drugs using drones: Drones are flying drugs into prisons, but the inmates involved face little punishment 4 months ago Duration 2:14 The case of a convicted drug trafficker whose online drug-selling platform was connected to the death of a Quebec teen has some calling for stronger actions against inmates who commit crimes while in prison. "It's a tool that is, I would say, more efficient, faster and less intrusive than strip searches," Bonnardel explained. So far, six scanners have been installed in the province's detention centres, with 11 more expected by March 31, 2027. "I've seen how the body detector works. I tell the inmates: 'It's going to be a lot more complicated,'" Bonnardel said of the attempt to smuggle in contraband. Bonnardel stated that all visitors and employees entering jails will also have to pass through detection arches and have their personal effects checked by X-ray devices to help secure entrances. Six detention centres are still without arches and should have them by March 31, 2026, he said. The next steps of the government's plan is expected to involve technological measures to address cellphone smuggling, including jamming cellular waves, which takes more time since it falls under the jurisdiction of the federal government. Between January and March, the ministry's statistics show a total of 896 cellphones were seized as a result of searches, investigations or interceptions by correctional officers. SAPSCQ, the union that represents prison guards in Quebec, said their president wasn't available for an interview.
The Independent
15-05-2025
- Politics
- The Independent
How might Starmer's migrant ‘return hubs' even work?
Britain has opened talks about sending failed asylum seekers to detention centres abroad, Keir Starmer has confirmed during a trip to Albania. The prime minister said he wanted to send migrants to 'return hubs' overseas once they had exhausted all avenues of appeal. He did not specify which countries were engaged in discussions, but Edi Rama, the Albanian prime minister, made it clear that Albania was not one of them: 'I have said from the outset, it is a model takes its time to be tested and if it works it can be replicated – not in Albania but other countries in the region.' He added: 'To be very frank with you we have been asked by many countries but we said no, as we are loyal to our marriage with Italy.' The Italian government has paid €600m (£505m) for two detention centres in Albania, although so far only 40 failed asylum seekers have been sent to them because the scheme has been beset by legal challenges. So where might British 'return hubs' be? As Rama suggested, other countries in the Balkans have been mooted as possible partners, including Serbia, Bosnia and North Macedonia. Places further afield have been suggested, although the only country known to be in negotiation about opening a return hub is Uganda, which is in discussion with the Netherlands. As the British government is said to be keen to work with other European countries in dealing with asylum, it will be watching to see whether anything comes of those talks. The European Union announced in March that it approved of member states seeking deals to establish offshore detention centres, which means that other countries may join the hunt for sites. Denmark, for example, passed a law four years ago to allow offshore asylum centres, although it has not yet established any. How would return hubs differ from the Rwanda policy? On Starmer's first day in office last year he ended the scheme to remove irregular migrants to Rwanda – a policy he condemned as a 'gimmick'. He said that it would 'never' act as a deterrent because it would take only 1 per cent of people arriving by small boat. The Rwanda policy was different from the current plan in that migrants would not be allowed to apply for asylum in Britain: they would have to apply for asylum in Rwanda, and if they were not accepted as genuine refugees they would be stranded there. The plan for return hubs is to house migrants who have applied for asylum in Britain and who have been rejected. The rationale is that they would not be able to disappear into the grey economy in the UK, and would have an incentive to return home. This is a development of the idea of setting up detention camps in Britain, or on British overseas territories such as St Helena. Tony Blair's government briefly considered siting a detention camp on Mull, in Scotland, while Boris Johnson's government looked at St Helena, Ascension Island and several other unsuitable locations. The other big difference between this plan and the Rwanda policy is that the UNHCR, the UN refugee agency, which condemned the Rwanda scheme, says return hubs are acceptable. Are there any better ideas? A Labour-leaning think tank this week proposed setting up asylum processing centres in France, so that those seeking refugee status in the UK could apply there. The problem with this plan is that many of those whose applications were rejected would still try to cross the Channel by small boat, knowing that once they were in the UK it would be hard to remove them. The think tank's plan is that Britain should propose a deal by which France accepts the return of migrants crossing the Channel in small boats. The idea is that for every genuine refugee the UK accepts, France should take one irregular migrant back. The British government, under both Labour and Conservatives, has been trying to secure a deal like this for some time, but it is not sufficiently in the interest of the French government. It would be left having to deal with thousands of Britain's 'rejects'. For the moment, then, offshore return hubs remain the most likely option, but as the Italian experience with Albania shows, they are hard to negotiate and remain vulnerable to legal challenge.
ABC News
09-05-2025
- Politics
- ABC News
Iranian refugee loses court battle against government over mental injuries caused by immigration detention
An Iranian refugee has failed in a bid to sue the federal government for mental health injuries caused by five years of immigration detention. The trial in South Australia's Supreme Court was seen as a test case for dozens of other refugees who were detained under similar circumstances. Payam Saadat was held in immigration detention in Western Australia and then South Australia after arriving on Ashmore Reef in 2000. The trial heard Mr Saadat fled Iran where he had been detained, tortured and physically abused before seeking asylum in Australia. His lawyer argued during the trial that the government knew, or should have known, that he was suffering from or vulnerable to a psychiatric illness either caused or made worse by his immigration detention. Mr Saadat arrived in Australia after a 29-day journey by boat to Ashmore Reef. A Howard-era asylum seeker, Mr Saadat was detained on mainland Australia, first at Curtin in Western Australia from 2000 to 2002, and then at Baxter detention centre in South Australia, for almost three years. In 2021, he launched a case against the federal government over mental injuries he alleged he suffered while he was held in detention. The matter was regarded as a "test case" because Mr Saadat was the first of more than 60 immigration detainees with claims against the Commonwealth and two private companies contracted to run detention centres in the state. His statement of claim against the government asserted that if he was not suffering a mental illness when he arrived at Baxter, he developed one there – a chronic adjustment disorder with mixed anxiety and depressed mood. His lawyer told the federal court the government knew, or should have known, that he was suffering a psychiatric injury, or was vulnerable to developing one, when he was moved to Baxter.
