Since the building’s renovation in 2019, the hunt for illegal cellphones promised to be draconian. 500 wave jammers have been installed.
But a few hours spent on social networks are enough to realize that in 2021 at the Health prison, communications are not all cut. Detainees film themselves and post videos from their cells with phones brought in from outside. Despite the jammers, residents note that there is still as much traffic of telephones at the gates of the prison.
“It is believed that there are a lot of cellphones that enter the prison”
A local resident
A resident of the neighborhood, whose windows in her apartment overlook the prison, says: “do you see that little corner? We see a lot of cell phone exchanges. It is believed that there are a lot of cellphones entering the prison”.
In the entrance to the neighboring building, on CCTV footage we obtained, we see individuals discreetly preparing packages. Food, drugs, but also telephones. They then throw their packages over the wall. The detainees just have to pick them up from the walks and use a well-honed technique: with pieces of sheets, they fish for the packages from their cells. And sometimes they are even exchanged between prisoners.
So why would the jammers be ineffective at the prison of Health despite a budget, according to the unions of 7 million euros per year. We were able to get inside the prison with the environmental senator from Paris, Esther Benbassa during an impromptu visit.
In the fight against cell phones, the Health prison is nevertheless an example, the first establishment in France equipped with a new generation jammer system.
“There are no technologies that work perfectly”
If on the ground floor, communications seem well cut, in the upper floors on the other hand, and in particular in the district of the defendants, the telephones work. Bruno Clément-Petremann, director of the establishment, admits the device’s random effectiveness: “the jammers still work in some parts of the establishment. After that, it’s true that when you’re upstairs, it’s easier. It poses problems, yes, but we have never had an escape here, technologies that work perfectly do not exist.”.
Technology, precisely. To put it simply, the jammers provided by a service provider neutralize networks 2 and 3G. They would only partially interfere with 4G. And today, the more powerful 5G makes jammers obsolete, recognizes the ministry of justice.
“Cell phones are a scourge in detention”
For Erwan Saoudi, regional delegate of the FO Justice prison union, it is urgent to act. And the health prison would be far from being an isolated case in France: “cell phones are a scourge in detention. This is what allows people still inside to be able to continue their trafficking outside, it also allows some detained people to continue harassing their victims. This is something that poses a problem for security inside but also outside.”.
When contacted, the service provider that installed the jammers said they were bound by a duty of confidentiality. In Health, 1,200 cell phones were seized this year. More than one device on average per inmate.
AMONG OUR SOURCES:
Finance Bill for 2022 / Annex Prison Administration
Directorate of Prison Administration / Contract notice (23/01/2016) / “Acquisition and maintenance of a solution for the detection and neutralization of illicit communications in penitentiary establishments in mainland France and overseas “
Department of Prison Administration / Contract award notice / “Acquisition and maintenance of a solution for the detection and neutralization of illicit communications in penitentiary establishments in mainland France and overseas “
Installation of jammers in penitentiary establishments / Written question n ° 23227 by Mr Cédric Perrin (Territoire de Belfort, LR), published in the OJ Senate of 10/06/2021.
(Non-exhaustive list)