168 mobiles seized in Tahíche prison in the last 5 years

The ACAIP-UGT union assures that these are objects "highly valued" by those inmates "such as prisoners for gender violence, terrorism crimes or belonging to organized gangs and those related to drug trafficking"

February 25 2022 (09:57 WET)
Updated in February 25 2022 (11:33 WET)
Facade of the Tahíche prison
Facade of the Tahíche prison

The ACAIP-UGT union has reported that, during the last 5 years, public officials at the Tahíche prison have seized "a total of 168 mobile phones". In addition, they point out that 2019 was the year in which they seized the most, reaching the figure of 52.

The union highlights the work carried out by public prison employees to prevent "the illicit trade of these prohibited items in prisons". They affirm that, in many cases, these telephones are used "to continue with criminal activity and evade control of communications."

ACAIP-UGT assures that these are objects "highly valued" by those inmates who have restricted communications, "such as prisoners for gender violence, terrorism crimes or belonging to organized gangs and those related to drug trafficking."

"The use of these telephones can generate debts between inmates and incidents due to their control," the union points out, and therefore, they indicate that prison workers "dedicate great efforts to the confiscation of these objects, most of which are easily camouflaged due to their small size and escape metal detectors as their components are made of plastic."

The union maintains that workers have found mobiles "in the most unexpected places, such as shoe soles, soft drink cans or in hygiene products." For this reason, they assure that "an exhaustive search of the modules is necessary, which requires the necessary personnel and specialized training."

"To fulfill the constitutional mandate of reintegration and re-education," ACAIP-UGT points out that "orderly coexistence within prisons is essential," and that therefore "the introduction of prohibited objects seriously harms the normal functioning of a penitentiary center."

However, the union points out that all this requires, in turn, "the correct functioning of prison inhibitors and that they adapt to new technologies." "If we limit the possibilities of use, we reduce the utility and avoid illicit trade," they maintain.

ACAIP-UGT insists on the need to "fill all vacancies". "The new promotions barely cover the vegetative losses, in addition, the organizational chart of the penitentiary centers must be adapted to the new forms of crime, and the list of job positions must be resized to adjust them to the new functions," they request from the union.

Therefore, the union points out that it is necessary to "resume the negotiation of the Penitentiary Public Function Law to face the new challenges facing the institution."

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