“Dozens of phones entered every week”
And in fact, this number could even be much higher. In the Brussels Region alone, the number of seizures explodes. “”We find several dozen phones every week“Explains Stijn van den Abeele, regional president of the free union of the public service (SLFP), for Brussels penitentiary establishments.
Despite operations of sweeping -which make it possible to detect phones thanks to the waves they emit, even when they are extinguished-carried out punctually in prisons, difficult to limit the spread of mobile phones. “”In Haren prison, there are drones that drop GSM“, Details this union representative. And for the latter, there is no doubt: if phones are massively introduced in prison, it is to pilot activities outside.”Inmates have access to a phone. If they wish to call their family, they have the possibility. Conversations are not listened to, only the recipient of the call is known“, Argument Stijn van den Abeele.
“A phone the size of an inch”
In recent months, in France, a new type of phone has been in the viewfinder of the authorities. Miniature devices, no larger than a lighter and often undetectable by security gantries. A very easy to access product that also spreads in Belgian prisons. “”The equipment we have does not allow them to detect them at the entrance to the prisons, because of their small size and the materials that compose them.“Explains Didier Breulheid, permanent delegate CSC Public Service for the prisons sector. Despite this, the” classic “smartphone remains the most widespread.”It can be dismantled and introduced in several times into prisons“, Specifies Didier Breulheid.
Do you just have to send foreign detainees to empty Belgian prisons? By doing it in the rules, they would always overflow …
Lack of means
For Didier Breulheid, he is “impossible“To stem this”scourge“With the means available to prisons today.”Entry equipment detects only metal devices, and only from a certain size“Explains the latter. The union representative also deplores a lack of staff to carry out excavations and a quasi-absence of sanctions to discourage prisoners.”Because of overcrowding, there are often several prisoners per cell. If we find a phone, the detainee said that it is not his, the detainee B does the same, so we are forced to leave them the benefit of the doubt and no one is sanctioned“Explains Didier Breulheid.
Prison seriously harms the mental health of prisoners already weakened by psychiatric disorders
In her parliamentary response, the Minister of Justice advanced several avenues of solutions. Notably “Small jammers to disrupt signals“These jammers could be put in place in the prisons”depending on the budgetary means released“. The use of specialized tracker dogs could also be more frequent.