Ohio prisons cracking down on smuggled cellphones
4/25/2014LEBANON, Ohio — The Ohio Department of Rehabilitation and Corrections says it is cracking down on cellphones smuggled into the state’s prisons.
The state has spent more than $300,000 in the past year to buy electronic equipment used to detect cellphones, which inmates are not allowed to possess. They’re being used in the state’s 28 prison facilities and four regional parole offices.
The Dayton Daily News reports that traditional detection methods turned up 483 cell phones in Ohio prisons last year, but many more likely go undetected.
Lebanon Correctional Institution Warden Ernie Moore says cellphones behind bars are dangerous because they give inmates the ability to continue criminal activity from the inside.
Popular smuggling methods include using books and hefty legal documents with sections cut out to hold a phone.