Calvin Begbie admitted to piloting a £1,000 Mavic Pro drone over the walls of Saughton Prison in Scotland to deliver three phones, charging equipment, and a quantity of Class A drugs to inmates.
According to court records, prison guards became aware of a drone that crashed on the prison grounds in November 2021. Upon further examination, it was determined that the drone carried cocaine, phones, SIM cards, and phone charging cables. The cocaine, totaling 14.4 grams, is categorized as a Class A drug.
Begbie was arrested in March of this year after DNA traces were found on the drone. Begbie’s attorney told the court that his client was addicted to cocaine at the time and had run up debts to support his drug habit. Begbie was told he could “pay off his debts” by agreeing to fly the contraband into the prison.
Begbie, hailing from Dalry, Edinburgh, has been sentenced to 240 hours of community service to be fulfilled within 12 months.
Begbie pleaded guilty to attempting to smuggle three mobile phones, nine SIM cards, a charging adapter, and a charging cable on November 8, 2021. Additionally, he confessed to his intention to introduce cocaine and operate a drone, flying it into the prison premises with cocaine attached to the device on the same date. (Reference)
See Also-
Corrections Counter-UAS Resources on C-UAS Hub
Image Credit: Adobe Stock by puleglot)
