Prisoners charged, punished after drugs and contraband packages thrown into Long Bay yard

FIVE inmates have been confined to their cells at Long Bay Correctional Centre after drug packages and other contraband were discovered.

The problem of contraband slipping through one area — known as 17 wing — has become a “running joke” among staff.

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FIVE inmates at Sydney’s Long Bay Correctional Centre have been charged and punished over the discovery of drugs and other contraband that were lobbed over a perimeter fence.

The inmates were confined to their cells for seven days, while other prisoners in the minimum-security section had their yard access restricted last Thursday after the packages were discovered.

The deliveries contained mostly tobacco and some buprenorphine, or “bupe” — a prescription drug used to treat opiate dependence.

The problem of contraband slipping through one area — known as 17 wing — has become a “running joke” among staff, Macquarie Radio reported on Monday. Significant amounts of contraband have reportedly made it over fences in the past year, including drugs, phones and syringes.

NSW Corrective Services denied there was any evidence of contraband detection not being reported.

Contraband was also found at Parklea prison last month.

“Regular contraband searches are made by staff in 17 wing and the yard in addition to searches by the specialist immediate action team,” a spokeswoman said.

“Contraband is a challenge for prison systems across the world.” The spokeswoman said Corrective Services had a zero-tolerance policy and searches for illegal and banned items were done every day, not only on prisoners but visitors.

In May, a man was busted on CCTV throwing packages containing 16 mobile phones, 15 chargers and eight SIM cards over the fence of Goulburn Correctional Centre. The bust was described as “unusual in its scale” by Corrective Services Commissioner Peter Severin.

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It was later revealed 81 phones had been seized from prisoners in 2016 along with 2.53kg of tobacco and 42 tattoo guns.

On Monday, mobile phones were again cited as a “significant challenge” to correctional officers worldwide.

They can be as small as 7cm long and are commonly smuggled in through “internal secretion methods”.