At the request of the prison administration, a sweeping operation took place this week in Mons prison. It had been several years since the penal establishment on Winston Churchill Boulevard had been the subject of a search of this type.
What is sweeping?
Sweeping is a method of searching cell phones. Used by us for several years, it allows, thanks to a dedicated box, to identify the presence of mobile phones nearby, even when not activated.
If communication from the authorities in this matter is relatively limited for security reasons, it seems that the number of devices at the disposal of the FPS Justice is very limited. We mention a few copies in circulation. Their unit cost amounts to several thousand euros. They are therefore used alternately in the different Belgian prisons, during targeted operations.
The use of cell phones in prison, a recurring problem
By regulation, the possession of a mobile phone by detainees is strictly prohibited. This is a disciplinary offense, classified among the most serious, which may result in a “isolation in living space” up to 30 days.
However, in practice, many mobile phones are in circulation in Belgian prison establishments.
Until the 2010s, the ban on the use of mobile phones in prisons was ensured by the use of wave jammers. However, the use of these wave jammers generated numerous incidental nuisances, particularly for local residents living near their installation, who were also impacted.
Since then, cell phone searches have been carried out either manually during searches by officers or electronically during sweeping operations.
A problem with multiple consequences
The use of mobile phones by prisoners within penitentiary establishments can cause various problems. Around 10% of inmates at Mons prison were in possession of a cell phone during the sweeping operation carried out last week.
“The possession of a cell phone by a prisoner is certainly a disciplinary offense in all circumstances. However, the use made of it can prove to be more or less problematic. When the telephone is only used to contact members of the detainee’s family, without specific elements, the consequences in terms of security are limited. When the telephone is used for the preparation of tort or criminal acts, the problem is obviously quite different. Furthermore, other uses of the telephone by detainees may prove problematic, such as access to certain information, particularly concerning their fellow detainees and the reasons for their detention, or such as the distribution of images taken in the place of detention. , or even speakers there” explains Liège criminal lawyer Olivier Dupont.
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