Canada’s Federal Prisons Have A Drug Smuggling Problem?

Serious questions need to be asked how drugs continue to make their way into the Canadian Prison System.

Correctional facilities across Canada are supposed to be some of the most secure places on earth and are meant to be drug-free, however, that is not the case. Whether it being minimum or maximum security, Canadian prisons have a major problem with illegal contraband being smuggled inside.

Illegal contraband being distributed in prisons has been a problem that has plagued every government that has controlled the Canadian Parliament. They have all acknowledge the problem exists, but no clear solution how to fix it.

On September 1, 2021, contraband and unauthorized items were seized at Donnacona Institution, a federal maximum-security institution. The contraband and unauthorized items seized included 116 grams of hashish, 62 grams of cannabis wax, 40 grams of marijuana, two cellphones, two USB keys, two ceramic knife blades and 190 grams of tobacco. The total estimated institutional value of this seizure is $54,145.

It is still undetermined how the illegal contraband would get inside the maximum security facility. Considering that inmates have no access to the exterior of the prison, it leaves many questions as to how the drugs are making it past the security measures in place and who is bypassing the system.

Many facilities such as the Edmonton Remand Center has installed a body scanner that can detect if drugs are being smuggled into their facility, but drugs are still making it past the scanner to the inmates.

No one likes to be accused of breaking the law but there have to be some factual answers as to why this keeps happening. We outlined the only logical ways we believe this is happening. In all instances, we sincerely hope we are wrong because it means someone in a position of trust, is a stain on the system and putting a negative spotlight on their colleagues who are upholding the law.

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