Man Jailed For 5 Years After Illegal Drone Flights Into HMP Liverpool

A Walton man has been sentenced to five years in prison for attempting to fly a drone containing prohibited items into HMP Liverpool.

29-year-old Anthony Cheeney was sentenced last week at Liverpool Crown Court.

At around 9pm on Thursday, 31 August 2017, officers sighted a drone close to HMP Liverpool on Hornby Road.

The drone was observed crashing nearby and was recovered.

Class A and B drugs and mobile phones and sim cards were found attached to the drone which were seized.

Detailed enquiries identified Cheeney and he was arrested and charged with conveying prohibited articles into prison.

Speaking after the sentencing, Detective Constable Chris Cook said:

“These sentences demonstrate the effective partnership working between Merseyside Police and the prison service.

“We are vigilant at all times to attempts to bring items into our prisons, and this and previous sentences should send a message to those who involve themselves in this kind of behaviour that they run the risk of being jailed for a significant time for criminal activity, which comes at high risk with low reward.

“The security of prisons is of paramount importance and any attempts to breach this security will be treated extremely seriously.

“Anyone attempting to bring contraband into a prison will be dealt with robustly to identify, not only those outside of the prison but also those inmates who seek to bypass the law.”

Since drones became widely available, more and more of the unmanned aerial vehicles have been spotted around prisons trying to deliver prohibited items inside of prison properties.

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