B.C. prison officials seize $300K in contraband cellphones, cannabis

The Mountain Institution in Agassiz, B.C. Sunday, March 30, 2008. (Jonathan Hayward / THE CANADIAN PRESS)

Officials at a medium-security prison in British Columbia are investigating after guards seized a package containing hundreds of thousands of dollars worth of contraband.

The Correctional Service of Canada says the package was discovered at Mountain Institution in Agassiz on March 26.

Items contained in the package included cellphones, charging cables and a form of cannabis concentrate known as “shatter.”

A statement from the correctional service says the estimated the institutional value of the prohibited items is $308,440.

The agency considers several factors when calculating the institutional value of contraband, including the security level of the institution where it was seized and the local market for drugs and other prohibited items.

Local police were notified of the seizure, and the institution is conducting its own investigation, the correctional service said Monday.

The correctional service says it uses a variety of tools to prevent drugs from being smuggled into its prisons, including ion scanners and drug-detecting dogs to search buildings, personal property, inmates, and visitors.

The agency says it has been “heightening measures to prevent contraband from entering its institutions” and is working with police to crack down on those who attempt to smuggle banned items into prisons.

Corrections officials maintain a telephone tip line for the public to report incidents of smuggling, drug use or other security concerns at all federal prisons. Tipsters can call the anonymous line toll-free at 1-866-780-3784.

Mountain Institution is located approximately 120 kilometres east of Vancouver and has a maximum capacity of about 440 inmates.