From shivs to a broken drone, here's a list of contraband recently seized from a maximum-security prison in B.C.
Corrections officials released a list Friday of a variety of contraband and unauthorized items they say were seized from a maximum-security prison in B.C. recently.
Among the items uncovered at Kent Institution, located in Agassiz, are what Correctional Service Canada described as "stabbing weapons," as well as the remnants of at least one broken drone.
Some of the contents included in a list released Friday have yet to be determined, following an analysis from the RCMP, but of those items known, the estimated value inside the prison is $48,000.
Most of the items were found in searches this month.
Specific details of how the items were located were not provided, but CSC said its staff use tools including ion scanners and drug-detecting dogs in their searches of institutions, inmates and visitors.
According to CSC, its officers found:
- Unidentified contents, sent to RCMP for identification, on May 19;
- One ounce of TCH butter, a bail of tobacco, four USB readers, four Chatr SIM cards and four micro SIM cards on June 27;
- Fifty-two nicotine patches and 3.5 grams of marijuana on July 16;
- Two cellphones, two "stabbing weapons," 30 grams of crystal methamphetamine (meth), and "remnants of an unmanned air vehicle" on July 17;
- Remnants of drone on July 20;
- One bale of tobacco, two grams of marijuana, 15 grams of crystal meth, 27.9 grams of shatter, two micro SD charges and 15 grams of "unidentified powder" on July 22; and
- Ten grams of cocaine, 41 grams of crystal meth and four packages of "butter product" on July 27.
The discovery of these items is not particularly unusual.
CSC issued a news release in July 2020 saying someone had been arrested after trying to smuggle drugs and SIM cards into Kent institution in a backpack.
Five "handmade stabbing weapons," often referred to as shivs, were seized last August during a sweep of the federal prison.
Each time an incident was reported publicly, CSC said it was "heightening measures" to stop contraband from entering Canadian prisons.
An update in the spring of 2019 came with the same promise of heightened measures, following the seizure of more than $86,000 worth of contraband, including a drone.
Friday's message too came with an assurance that CSC was taking steps to prevent these items from being smuggled in. The paragraph in the latest news release was identical to the phrasing used in a news release in 2019.
It appears that despite the CSC's "heightening measures," and despite a telephone tip line for the public to report smuggling efforts, these unauthorized items are still reaching Canadian inmates.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Indian envoy warns of 'big red line,' days after charges laid in Nijjar case
India's envoy to Canada insists relations between the two countries are positive overall, despite what he describes as 'a lot of noise.'
Stormy Daniels describes meeting Trump during occasionally graphic testimony in hush money trial
With Donald Trump sitting just feet away, Stormy Daniels testified Tuesday at the former president's hush money trial about a sexual encounter the porn actor says they had in 2006 that resulted in her being paid to keep silent during the presidential race 10 years later.
U.S. paused bomb shipment to Israel to signal concerns over Rafah invasion, official says
The U.S. paused a shipment of bombs to Israel last week over concerns that Israel was approaching a decision on launching a full-scale assault on the southern Gaza city of Rafah against the wishes of the U.S.
Former homicide detective explains how police will investigate shooting outside Drake's Bridle Path mansion
Footage from dozens of security cameras in the area of Drake’s Bridle Path mansion could be the key to identifying the suspect responsible for shooting and seriously injuring a security guard outside the rapper’s sprawling home early Tuesday morning, a former Toronto homicide detective says.
Northern Ont. woman makes 'eggstraordinary' find
A chicken farmer near Mattawa made an 'eggstraordinary' find Friday morning when she discovered one of her hens laid an egg close to three times the size of an average large chicken egg.
Susan Buckner, who played spirited cheerleader Patty Simcox in 'Grease,' dead at 72
Susan Buckner, best known for playing peppy Rydell High School cheerleader Patty Simcox in the 1978 classic movie musical 'Grease,' has died. She was 72.
Jeremy Skibicki has 'uphill battle' to prove he's not criminally responsible in Winnipeg killings: legal analysts
Accused killer Jeremy Skibicki could have a challenging time convincing a judge that he is not criminally responsible for the deaths of four Indigenous women, a legal analyst says.
Bye-bye bag fee: Calgary repeals single-use bylaw
A Calgary bylaw requiring businesses to charge a minimum bag fee and only provide single-use items when requested has officially been tossed.
Alcohol believed to be a factor in boating incident after 2 men die: N.S. RCMP
Two Nova Scotia men are dead after a boat they were travelling in sank in the Annapolis River in Granville Centre, N.S., on Monday.