Correctional officers say they’ve caught another backpack-wearing pigeon at a B.C. prison.
John Randle, regional president for the Union of Canadian Correctional Officers, said the bird was captured inside the Matsqui Institution, a medium-security prison in Abbotsford, on Feb. 27.
Unlike a similar pigeon caught on the grounds of the nearby Pacific Institution in December, this pigeon’s backpack was empty. The prior pigeon was carrying a cargo of methamphetamine.
“The best guess, or educated guess I could make right now is that it looks like they were training this one to eventually bring in a package,” Randle said. “They didn’t find anything in the backpack that was secured to the pigeon.”
The backpack, he told Global News, was fabricated out of blue jeans and bed sheets.
“It’s a huge concern. We’re fighting the drone issue big time right now, almost on a daily basis. And now we’re going to start worrying about wildlife,” he said.
“(We’re) searching and watching the skies I guess. It’s kind of funny to say that.”
Randle said the drone problem is a growing concern, noting that correctional officers had intercepted everything from ceramic knives to cellphones to drugs.
He said officers want to see more action from the federal government to combat smuggling, such as the deployment of netting or drone detection systems.
Randle said corrections officers were also working with police on the smuggling problem.