Drones carrying drugs and phones towards jail intercepted by police

Police have seized two drones carrying drugs and mobile phones which were flying towards a prison.

The devices were discovered by officers investigating attempts to smuggle contraband into all-male Pentonville jail in Islington, north London.

Over the weekend of August 12 to August 14, officers from the Caledonian Neighbourhoods Policing Team and the Metropolitan Police's Special Constabulary carried out patrols in the area of the prison as part of Operation Airborne.

In the early hours of August 13 they saw a man acting suspiciously close to the jail.

On noticing the police, he ran from the scene, dropping two bags containing a quantity of Class B drugs and mobile phones. He evaded arrest.

The following day, officers recovered a drone after tracking it flying over HMP Pentonville, before it crashed.

They were later alerted to another drone being flown towards the prison.

It was stopped mid-flight and was found to be carrying a package containing a large quantity of drugs and two mobile phones.

Detective Chief Inspector Steve Heatley said: "These recovered drones carried a substantial amount of Class B drugs, legal highs and a large quantity of mobile phones; we are able to intercept them thanks to the vigilance of officers and the public.

"We work closely with the Prison Service to gather intelligence in order to carry out proactive operations to arrest and prosecute such offenders. I would urge anyone with information about these events to contact the police or Crimestoppers to help us to identify those responsible."

Anyone with information is asked to contact police on 101 or call Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111.