Gang That Used Drones For Prison Drops Jailed

Frankie McCamleyHendon Magistrates' Court


Harry LowLondon


A gang that used drones to smuggle drugs, weapons and smart phones into prisons has actually been imprisoned.


An approximated 75% of drone drops across London's prisons was because of the seven guys who targeted prisons consisting of Wormwood Scrubs, Brixton, Pentonville and Wandsworth.


Shafaghatullah Mohseni, 29, Hashim Al-Hussaini, 28, Mohammed Hamoud, 22, Faiz Salah, 29, Zahar Essaghi, 51, Mustafa Ibrahim, 30, and Emanuel Fisniku, 25, were sentenced at Harrow Crown Court.


Det Insp John Cowell stated: "This highly organised gang believed they were outmaneuvering the police and prison authorities. What they didn't understand is they were subject to sustained specialist monitoring by Met officers."


All 7 guys admitted their functions in a "serious, organised, and respected enterprise" to provide Class B and C drugs, and conveying list A and B short articles into jails. The hearing was held at Hendon Magistrates' Court, where some Harrow Crown Lawsuit are being heard.


The men would travel by cars and truck to the prisons, frequently in the early hours of the early morning, and fly plans filled with contraband through cell windows.


CCTV video footage reveals a few of the gang connecting fishing wire to a drone which was connected to a package and melted using a lighter to secure it. This was then flown to the detainees in their cells.


The gang likewise targeted jails in Norwich, Leicester, Onley in Northamptonshire and Bedford.


At the centre of the conspiracy was Mohseni, an Afghan national who was approved leave to stay as a child in the UK in 2003.


He was sentenced to 5 years and three months and will serve a minimum of 40% of that.


He was described in court as having the leading function behind nearly every drop, arranging flights, running the drones, co-ordinating drivers and lookouts, handling payments totalling more than ₤ 30,000, and with prisoners using illicit cellphones inside the prisons.


His defence barrister argued the 29-year-old had actually built up financial obligations of about ₤ 30,000 from a gambling dependency and feared for his security.


The court heard that a person drone crashed and was taken by the authorities at HMP Wandsworth.


It consisted of cannabis, capsules of Pregabalin known as "brand-new Valium", and tablets of Alprazolam typically sold under the brand Xanax.


Another plan was intercepted inside Wandsworth Prison, after cops alerted staff of a drone flight to a specific cell. The bundle contained cannabis, cigarettes and five iPhones.


Financial investigations revealed money being transferred from partners of serving detainees to money the operation.


Last year, the chief inspector of prisons Charlie Taylor alerted of the increased danger drones would pose for smuggling weapons and drugs into jails.