Two Montreal men have been arrested at the NB Prison during a drone drug smuggling investigation

Two Montreal-area men are facing human trafficking charges for using a drone to smuggle drugs and other contraband into a maximum-security prison in rural New Brunswick.

Police seized numerous items with an estimated criminal value of more than $250,000 in the investigation into the drone drug drop at Atlantic Institution in Renous, said Cpl. Brad Gallant of the Miramichi Integrated Law Enforcement Unit.

Integrated enforcement units, consisting of members of the municipal police force, the RCMP and the Department of Justice and Public Safety, focus on combating human trafficking, firearms and violence.

Gallant said drug smuggling drones are a growing problem in prisons across the country.

“In every province there are working groups dedicated to this issue,” he said.

“Significant seizure”

Atlantic Institution, working with Miramichi’s Integrated Enforcement Unit, began an investigation in February into the smuggling of contraband and controlled substances into the prison via an unmanned aerial vehicle, Gallant said.

On May 3, this unit, with assistance from the Bathurst Corrections Unit and the RCMP, arrested two men, ages 25 and 29, at a Miramichi supermarket on charges of possession for the purpose of trafficking.

Items seized included fentanyl, cocaine, shrapnel, hashish, cannabis, tobacco, cell phones, SIM cards, cell phone chargers, lighters, cigarette papers and cash, as well as a piloted unmanned aerial vehicle.

It was a “pretty significant seizure,” Gallant said. “Of the items seized, there were large quantities which would have had a significant impact on the interior if they had arrived there.”

“Prison Packages”

The drugs were bundled in so-called “jail packs” – small cylinders wrapped in cellophane and then wrapped with electrical tape to prevent them from breaking when dropped, Gallant said.

“It is packaged in such a way that it is easy for someone to conceal inside to avoid detection.”

The Atlantic Institution prison in Renous is designed to accommodate up to 331 male maximum security prisoners. (CBC News)

The defendants are scheduled to appear in Miramichi provincial court in November and face charges of human trafficking and possession for the purpose of trafficking, Gallant said.

They could also be charged under the Tobacco Tax Act and the Cannabis Act, he said.

“You know, the old saying goes: It would be kind of naive to think that one arrest would stop it. So it’s an ongoing investigation,” Gallant said. “It will continue.”

Correctional facility combats ‘evolving threat’

The Correctional Service of Canada did not immediately respond to a request for comment Friday, but said in a statement last month that it was taking several steps to combat the “evolving threat” of drones, including acquiring drone detection and deployment equipment of dogs trained to find electronic devices and considering whether to obtain “legal approval” for the use of drone jamming technology.

Last month, guards in Abbotsford, British Columbia, held a protest to draw attention to the increasing violence and overdoses allegedly caused by the drone drops. According to the Union of Canadian Correctional Officers, it happens daily.

The Atlantic Institution investigation involved members of the prison’s Security Intelligence Unit, four members of Miramichi’s Integrated Enforcement Unit, three members of Bathurst’s Enforcement Unit and some RCMP officers, Gallant said.

“In addition, intelligence information was shared across the country,” he said.