Acknowledging that prisoners continue to have access to cell phones while incarcerated at Her Majesty’s Prisons (HMP), National Security Minister Dr. Bernard Nottage recently suggested that there is some level of corruption at the facility and pledged to “weed” out unethical prison officials.
In a brief interview with The Nassau Guardian last week, Nottage said the prison superintendent has been mandated to launch an inquiry to determine how the cell phones are smuggled into prison.
The discovery of cell phones has been a longstanding problem.
Nottage’s comments came after he spoke about the issue in the House of Assembly during debate on the budget last week.
“We know that there are persons in prison, in maximum security who haven’t been out of maximum security, but they are in possession of cell phones and some of these people order crimes to be committed by others using cell phones,” he said during debate on the 2013/2014 budget.
“In maximum security they don’t go out of the cells. You do a sweep and clean it out, and 24 hours later, you do another sweep [and you find a] cell phone.
“How does that happen? I have told the superintendent of the prison that if there are prison officers who are engaged in any level of corruption, we have to weed them out.”
Nottage said the government intends to purchase a cell blocker which will render the cell phones inoperable.
“We’ve had some technical difficulties with the technology in the past, but we’re hoping that we can get the right technology this time so that we can block the calls in the prison, so we can cut off that [communication],” he said.
This is not the first time that Nottage pointed to corruption among some prison officials.
Last June Nottage said a relatively small group of “highly-organized rogue prison officers” were supplying inmates with contraband and cell phones.
Former Prison Superintendent Dr. Elliston Rahming estimated last year August that around 20 cell phones are confiscated from inmates each week.
By Krystel Rolle
Guardian Staff Reporter
