Drugs, phones airdropped by 'drone' into Thai prison

[webfact]

Drugs, phones airdropped by 'drone' into prison
By Coconuts Bangkok



BANGKOK: -- Thailand's drug smugglers, the same inventive people behind amphetamine-filled catfood, meatballs, shoes and tampons have seized on the latest fad for innovation.

A remote-operated drone with a mounted camera dropped yaba and some mobile phones into a prison in Khon Kaen province yesterday.

The helicopter soared over the prison walls and dropped its illicit cargo near a bathroom area, according to provincial governor Somsak Suwannajarit.

Inside the box were the four kilograms of speed, three mobile phones, some SIM cards, battery chargers and shanks. [read more...]

Full story: http://bangkok.coconuts.co/2014/02/10/drugs-phones-airdropped-drone-prison

-- Coconuts Bangkok 2014-02-10

[Costas2008]

The age of modern technology, introduced to Thailand...........even for the wrong reasons.

[JoeThePoster]

They caught the helicopter pilot, but then he was lego.

[prestburypark]

4kg speed?

Was it a Chinook?

[stubuzz]

The helicopter was thought to cost 1 million baht?? Where do they get these numbers from!

[draftvader]

"1 million baht, ha ha ha ha ha...."

[davetrout]

4kg speed?

Was it a Chinook?

and not mention the phones, charges and shanks. this would be big weight for little

machine.

Edited February 10, 2014 by davetrout

[AleG]

The helicopter was thought to cost 1 million baht?? Where do they get these numbers from!

Looks like a 700 size helicopter, with a Naza flight controller for autonomous flight and an FPV setup to see where it is going. Shouldn't cost even a tenth of the "experts" estimate.

[bushman1666]

"Shanks". Lamb shanks maybe? Must be special request from the Farhang contingent.

[FalangBaa]

Next time, they might get idea of dropping a dozen fully loaded automatic weapons and hand grenades instead of yaba and phones to yabber on, and then they might actually be able to break out!!!

[FalangBaa]

"Shanks". Lamb shanks maybe? Must be special request from the Farhang contingent.

A shank is a makeshift knife made inside prison, so they weren't strictly shanks because they were made outside of the prison. Not to be confused with a shawshank, which can be your redemption. Alternatively, could have been a typo for "skanks".

Edited February 10, 2014 by FalangBaa

[hanno]

Hmm, some people shouldn't post if they don't know what they are talking about. Some of the industrial RC helicopters go up to USD 50,000 (THB 1.5 million) and they can certainly lift that sort of stuff.

[AleG]

Hmm, some people shouldn't post if they don't know what they are talking about. Some of the industrial RC helicopters go up to USD 50,000 (THB 1.5 million) and they can certainly lift that sort of stuff.

That is not an "industrial" helicopter, it's a hobby helicopter, a T-Rex or a clone of it.

[Gsxrnz]

Bit more hi-tech than last year. They were stuffing drugs into a tennis ball and bashing them over the wall back then.

And it must be nearly overdue for the annual "purge" of telephones from the prisons. I think once a year they have a raid and confiscate them all. Last year they found over a hundred I believe.

It seems that when the prisoner demand for phones slows down (as in the wardens have over supplied the market in exchange for tea-money), the wardens suddenly create huge demand by confiscating all the phones they've previously supplied, and selling them back to the inmates.

Classic Entreupeunership in action.

[hanno]

Hmm, some people shouldn't post if they don't know what they are talking about. Some of the industrial RC helicopters go up to USD 50,000 (THB 1.5 million) and they can certainly lift that sort of stuff.

That is not an "industrial" helicopter, it's a hobby helicopter, a T-Rex or a clone of it.

I do not think a T-Rex can carry that sort of weight, more like a Bergen Industrial Turbine helicopter.

[AleG]

Hmm, some people shouldn't post if they don't know what they are talking about. Some of the industrial RC helicopters go up to USD 50,000 (THB 1.5 million) and they can certainly lift that sort of stuff.

That is not an "industrial" helicopter, it's a hobby helicopter, a T-Rex or a clone of it.

I do not think a T-Rex can carry that sort of weight, more like a Bergen Industrial Turbine helicopter.

Go to the Bangkok Post website and look at the picture of the helicopter, then you can stop with the speculation.

[quagmirefg]

People will always find ways to conceal or sneak illegal items.

Innovative buggers tho using a remote controlled device to introduce contraband into a jail.

[h90]

The helicopter was thought to cost 1 million baht?? Where do they get these numbers from!

I once read what the German and Austrian police paid for drones......roughly 5-20 times (depending on the details) of the market price........(they were in the 2 Millon Baht range each)

Even with some service contracts there is space enough for some nice "commission" to the decision maker.....

I guess there they got the numbers....

[MMarlow]

4kg speed?

Was it a Chinook?

and not mention the phones, charges and shanks. this would be big weight for little

machine.

Are you just making an observation about it's payload or are you saying that it didn't happen?

[webfact]

Radio Controlled Helicopter Used To Drop Phones Over Prison Wall

A radio controlled helicopter worth 150,000 THB was used to fly in 6 mobile phones by passing over the prison’s wall. Unfortunately for the prisoners the helicopter was seen by the warden and was seized. The controller was nowhere to be seen.

KHONKEAN – Febuary 10, 2014 [PDN]; at 16.00, Pol.Somsak Suwarnnasutcharit, Khonkhean governor, Mr.Wutichai Jenwiriyakul, the commandor of the central prison Khonkean announced the results of as drug bust where they found 4 grams of crystal meth, a remote controlled helicopter with a camera, worth around 160,000 baht, 6 Nokia 208 worth 1,900 baht, and from body searching, found 3 phones, 8 sim cards, 1 memory card, 3 battery chargers, 4 head phones, 20 sharp iron modified weapons and tattoo equipment.

At noon, there was a remote control helicopter which flew over the wall to zone 1, zone 2, where it dropped off objects attached to it which were small boxes. But all the boxes dropped where caught by the officers.

Then the officers then announced that all 3,000 inmates were to be searched and found 3 mobile phones, sharp iron modified weapons, 4 grams of crystal meth. The officers co-operated with the border patrolling police 2 to find who was controlling the helicopter which had crashed into a drainage ditch. The officer seized it as evidence.

However, after the press conference, they gave the helicopter to detective police team and the video clip with the recording of a voice to find out who ordered the phones.

Source: http://www.pattayadailynews.com/en/2014/02/10/radio-controlled-helicopter-used-to-drop-phones-over-prison-wall/


-- Pattaya Daily News 2014-02-10

[Nepsydaz]

a remote controlled helicopter worth more than a million baht used to deliver phones and drugs in the prison was abandoned 150 m from the prision......

well i find that a lot of information is missing from this report...

and why the hell is there a LEGO helicopter in this article?

[Why ask]

Since when has a helicopter been a 'drone'?

I was getting all excited, thinking I had found Amazon's testing ground.

[draftvader]

a remote controlled helicopter worth more than a million baht used to deliver phones and drugs in the prison was abandoned 150 m from the prision......

well i find that a lot of information is missing from this report...

and why the hell is there a LEGO helicopter in this article?

I dunno, it has certainly brightened my Monday to imagine our yellow faced hero in the photo delivering drugs into prison with his perfect little smile!

[Gsxrnz]

You'd have thunk they would have sprung for the model with inbuilt GPS that could have been programmed to go to specific GPS co-ordinates to drop the goodies, and then fly to a safe landing site for collection.

[LivinLOS]

Hmm, some people shouldn't post if they don't know what they are talking about. Some of the industrial RC helicopters go up to USD 50,000 (THB 1.5 million) and they can certainly lift that sort of stuff.

Pot.. to Kettle.. Your black...

Yeah thats really a 50k industrial spec coptor..

As per "some people shouldn't post if they don't know what they are talking about"

Edited February 10, 2014 by LivinLOS

[whatsinaname]

waiting for this to happen

guess they picked the idea up from Amazon

now wait until the inmates get their hands on a 3D printer in jail... that now will be fun...

no more need to stash things in cakes and girlfriends intimate parts

[Jeremy50]

The helicopter was thought to cost 1 million baht?? Where do they get these numbers from!

Looks like a 700 size helicopter, with a Naza flight controller for autonomous flight and an FPV setup to see where it is going. Shouldn't cost even a tenth of the "experts" estimate.

I have a gps drone, it will fly up to 5km's away and then return along a programmed flightpath, steaming video to my ipad as it goes. A lot of fun for looking down on jungle, rivers etc. Mine is not up to carrying anything though.

[draftvader]

The helicopter was thought to cost 1 million baht?? Where do they get these numbers from!

Looks like a 700 size helicopter, with a Naza flight controller for autonomous flight and an FPV setup to see where it is going. Shouldn't cost even a tenth of the "experts" estimate.

I have a gps drone, it will fly up to 5km's away and then return along a programmed flightpath, steaming video to my ipad as it goes. A lot of fun for looking down on jungle, rivers etc. Mine is not up to carrying anything though.

What model you got and what software do you use to fly it? Very interested in this as a hobby.

[tim armstrong]

... and the drone disguised as a large owl was first discovered by an enthusiastic birdwatching guard who wondered why the owl's wings were circling above its head. His curiosity was further aroused when the owl dropped a long brown 4kg package into the prison yard. 'Bugger me' he said, I knew that owls shit hard pellets, but that was a monster !

[AleG]

The helicopter was thought to cost 1 million baht?? Where do they get these numbers from!

Looks like a 700 size helicopter, with a Naza flight controller for autonomous flight and an FPV setup to see where it is going. Shouldn't cost even a tenth of the "experts" estimate.

I have a gps drone, it will fly up to 5km's away and then return along a programmed flightpath, steaming video to my ipad as it goes. A lot of fun for looking down on jungle, rivers etc. Mine is not up to carrying anything though.

It is fun, I should know.