Port Phillip Prison: Inmates smuggle banned items through dirty laundry from old folks’ home

A MELBOURNE prison crime ring has been busted smuggling in drugs, tech gear and tobacco via old folks’ home laundry.

A prison crime ring had been busted smuggling in drugs, tech gear and tobacco via old folks’ home laundry

• Prisoners hurt as bikie brawl in Port Phillip Prison gym
• Mobile phone found in Port Phillip Prison cell of killer Costas Athanasi
• Prisoners hurt as bikie brawl in Port Phillip Prison gym
• Prisoner and visitor attack prison staff

A PRISON crime ring has been busted smuggling in drugs, tech gear and tobacco via old folks’ home laundry.

Jail authorities made the shock discovery last week in piles of soiled laundry from aged care facilities, which is cleaned by inmates at Port Phillip Prison.

Phone chargers, USB sticks, balloons suspected of containing drugs and pouches of tobacco were uncovered during a search of linen and garments.

They had been brought in via trucks from aged care homes around Melbourne.

The laundry is cleaned under contract by the prisoners.

Aerial view of Port Phillip Prison from Google earth.

The haul would have been worth tens of thousands of dollars on the prison black market.

It is suspected of being put together after orders were placed by a large group of inmates.

One prisoner is believed to have been moved to Barwon Prison, near Geelong, in the wake of the find.

The discovery of chargers indicates there are almost certainly mobile phones in the hands of inmates.

The Herald Sun revealed last week that a mobile was recently found in the cell of killer Costas Athanasi, one of three men serving long sentences for the murder of Melbourne lawyer Keith Allan.

An illustration of Costas Athanasi (middle) from court in 2004.

Police are investigating how Athanasi got hold of the phone inside the maximum-security prison and are also looking into who he was contacting and why.

Athanasi is serving a minimum of 19 years over the murder of Mr Allan, who was killed in 2000 but whose body has never been found.

There has long been puzzlement about the volume of contraband getting inside Port Phillip Prison.

Sources say there is no way all of it is making its way in via contact visits.

Last October it was revealed prison guards worked with an alleged drug kingpin to smuggle ice into Port Phillip Prison.

A sign outside Port Phillip Prison.

A major investigation was sparked after authorities discovered guards were helping inmates smuggle the drug into the prison on behalf of an outlaw motorcycle gang.

Police say the guards smuggled the ice in at night and passed it to prisoners, who hid the drug in light fittings in their cells.

Brett McMerrin, director of justice operations at G4S which operates the prison, said: “G4S takes its responsibility to maintain the safety and security of prisoners at Port Phillip Prison seriously.

“We constantly run targeted security and intelligence initiatives and are not able to comment on those operations in detail.

“We are strongly committed and dedicated to tackling the constant challenge of preventing the trafficking of illicit drugs and other contraband into our facility.

“To this end we employ multiple strategies and systems to stop the flow and demand of contraband at Port Phillip Prison working closely with Corrections Victoria and Victoria Police.

“Additionally any prisoners found with contraband are charged with prison offences and have other restrictions imposed.”

Some of the conflict dogging the facility in recent months has been attributed to gangs wrestling for control of the behind bars drug trade.

The Herald Sun understands the prisoners televisions are compatible with use of USB sticks.

There have been recent discoveries of sticks containing, among other things, hard-core pornography.

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Port Phillip Prison.