2,000 phones in jails but only 12 inmates convicted

A MERE 12 prison inmates have been convicted for possessing mobile phones — despite more than 2,000 devices being confiscated in jail, it emerged yesterday.

Dublin Fine Gael TD Lucinda Creighton branded the prosecution rate “laughable” and warned drug bosses may still be able to control gangs and even order murders from jail.

“Only 30 legal proceedings have been launched against prisoners since May, resulting in just 12 convictions. Twelve convictions for 2,010 mobile phones seized is a rate of less than 1%.This is a serious failure.

“Far too little is being done to prevent criminal gangs from operating inside prisons. Drug gangs are still operating on the inside, and it is widely believed that murders have been ordered by inmates,” she said.

She added that the €3.7 million allocated for prison phone technology would not be enough to cover all 15 Irish jails in which mobiles have been seized. “If Minister Lenihan is incapable of clamping down on the drugs gangs through the application of the relevant legislation on mobile phone possession, then he needs to make sure that at least the resources are available for technology to prevent them operating,” Ms Creighton added.

The Justice Department pointed to the large number of confiscations as a sign the crackdown was working and stated prosecutions were a matter for the DPP, and convictions in the realm of the courts.

The department also said it would not be possible to pinpoint who was using phones found in shared cells or communal areas.

Since May, 687 mobiles have been seized at Mountjoy; in Limerick 241; Midlands 143; Cloverhill 120; and Cork 108.

The clampdown followed concerns gangland killings were ordered from prison.

In June, convicted robber John Daly telephoned RTÉ’s Liveline from his cell in Portlaoise’s maximum security prison, prompting opposition parties to claim that prisons had become a “soft option”.

Earlier this year, it also emerged five prison officers at three Dublin jails were involved in a smuggling scam that included the delivery of phones and alcohol to inmates.

As of May, it is an offence for prisoners to have unauthorised possession of or to use mobile telecommunications devices. It is also an offence to supply such a device to a prisoner.

Fines not exceeding €10,000 or imprisonment for a term not exceeding five years are in place for individuals convicted of the offence.