Lee Anna Maharaj
leeanna.maharaj@guardian.co.tt
Local security expert Garvin Heerah says there needs to be a joint effort to deter threats posed by drones to prison facilities in T&T. Speaking to Guardian Media, Heerah said an urgent counter-drone plan is needed from the Ministry of National Security.
Heerah’s comment comes days after a video circulating on social media showed contraband being delivered to the Maximum State Prison in Arouca via a drone.
“My concern is that it is contraband today; it could easily be explosives or weapons tomorrow, and not only our prison facilities, what about our critical infrastructure? What about public utilities? What about those high-risk areas? Drone technology can be used now for the advancement of criminal activity in all of these areas,” he said.
“For instance, our oil and gas sector, they have been designated no-fly zones, and I think with immediate effect, we need to see some counter-drone activity taking place through civil aviation, through National Security for instance.”
Heerah said there needs to be urgent collaboration and the establishment of an investigative team to detect where the drones are coming from.
“They need to meet now and designate the prisons and our critical infrastructure as no-fly zones and ensure that drone shield technology is utilised that can deter the thought of trying to get a drone airborne within the vicinity. Also, it’s not where the drones are seen, but where the drones are being flown from and the control devices,” he said.
He added that these measures are followed by the United Kingdom, the United States, and countries in Central and South America that are also dealing with this issue.
Efforts to reach Minister of National Security Fitzgerald Hinds were unsuccessful.
On Friday, Acting Prisons Commissioner Deopersad Ramoutar said the video circulating on social media was not recent, but drones dropping off items at the nation’s prisons was a serious concern for them. Ramoutar also acknowledged that their plans to combat the issue may not be completely foolproof and emphasised the need for enhanced security measures.