Man jailed for attempting to throw 'cannabis' package over prison wall in Bedford

Filip Tanasescu, 21, of Pedley Road, pleaded guilty to attempting to throw a prohibited item into a prison.

He was sentenced on Friday at Luton Crown Court to four months behind bars.

At around 1.50am on 10 December 2018, Tanasescu was seen on CCTV walking towards a wall bordering HMP Bedford.

CCTV captured him talking on the phone whilst standing next to the wall. While on the phone, he removed a package from his pocket and tied it to a piece of weighted fishing line that was dangling over the wall, and attempted to throw it over the wall.

His attempt was unsuccessful, and the string fell back towards the street. Moments later, around ten minutes after he was first seen on CCTV, police arrived and he was arrested.

When the package was taken apart at the police station, it was found to contain tobacco, rolling paper and a small pouch of cannabis.

The sentencing follows the announcement of a new operation which started just before Christmas, aiming to tackle throw overs and other illegal activity at Bedford Prison.

The force’s Bedford community team are working to deter items being thrown over the wall by carrying out more patrols around the prison perimeter. Officers will also be working more closely with colleagues from the prison and other agencies to crackdown on the smuggling of other items to prisoners.

Sergeant Ian Leeson is leading the operation. He said: “We will continue to crack down on people who try and smuggle items into prison.

“Officers responded within ten minutes of Tanasescu initially being seen on CCTV, which I hope acts as a deterrent to others. We will respond robustly to any reports we receive of items being thrown over into Bedford Prison, and take appropriate action.

“We’re also working closely with Bedford Prison, who continue to flag up any suspicious incidents extremely quickly. Their support will be vital in putting a stop to these issues, and will help us clamp down more on any illegal activity.”

Anyone who has any information about this activity is asked to call Bedfordshire Police on 101, or report information online at www.bedfordshire.police.uk/report