In the Philippines, drug lords inside the New Bilibid Prison (NBP) continue to control the daily operations of the prison through smuggled mobile phones. cell phone jammerThis phenomenon has attracted great attention from anti-corruption organizations and government officials, especially in the context of the growing drug problem. signal jammer
Current situation of mobile phone smuggling
According to Arsenio Evangelista, president of the Volunteers Against Crime and Corruption (VACC), the prevalence of mobile phones in the NBP has made it easy for prisoners to manipulate drug transactions. GPS jammer Evangelista said during a Senate hearing on the Good Conduct Time Allowance (GCTA) bill that the National Penitentiary Maximum Security Building 14 has become a hotbed for drug outflow. He pointed out that about 80% of illegal drugs originate from the prison, which poses a serious challenge to the Philippine president’s war on drugs. Wifi jammer
During the hearing, Senator Panfilo Lacson also raised concerns about this phenomenon. He shared a conversation with retired police general Benjamin Magalong, highlighting the flow and control of drugs inside the prison. He pointed out that drug lords can control the movement of drugs through mobile phones and can control everything inside the prison, while the investment in this regard is only the expenditure on signal jammers.
Market for smuggled mobile phones
The smuggling price of mobile phones has also attracted attention. Evangelista mentioned that the smuggling price of 2G to 3G mobile phones ranges from 500,000 to 700,000 pesos, while the price of high-end mobile phones even reaches 2 million to 2.5 million pesos. This expensive price reflects the difficulty of obtaining mobile phones inside prisons and the concealment of smuggling. Even Roy Vivo, a senior inspector of the Bureau of Prisons, admitted that the security management in prisons is very strict, but it still cannot prevent the influx of contraband such as mobile phones.
Prison management and corruption
At the hearing, witness Yolanda Camilon's husband, prisoner Godfrey Gamboa, revealed the conspiracy between police and prisoners in the prison. He said that prison guards often conspire with prisoners to bring contraband such as mobile phones and televisions into prisons, and this corruption has exacerbated the chaos in the prison.
In addition, Gamboa mentioned that prison guards would decide whether to allow prisoners to bring in food and other items based on their mood and the "gas money" they were given. This corruption not only fueled illegal activities in prisons, but also allowed drug lords to continue to execute their orders in the cells.
