It’s a scorching hot day at Sydney’s Silverwater maximum security prison as I watch specialist prison guards enter the basketball court for a surprise cell raid.
Contraband is a constant challenge in prisons around the world: weapons, drugs, alcohol and small mobile phones are in constant high demand behind bars.
Without intervention, prisoners can leave prison richer than they arrived, but NSW Corrections Minister Anoulack Chanthivong is cracking down on the black market.
“If it’s there, we’ll find it,” Mr. Chanthivong tells me. “If anyone tries to bring it in, they will get caught.”
The Security Operations Group team is made up of more than 20 people and looks intimidating with their uniforms and gas grenades strapped to heavily padded vests.
But despite their imminent presence, my attention remains focused on four specific members of the team.
Dubbed their “most valuable asset,” Sassy, Hank, Chloe and Bruno are highly trained dogs led by SOG’s first female manager, Vanessa Allen.
“The K9 Unit within SOG plays a crucial role in this effort, allowing us to accurately identify the locations of contraband so we can detect and eliminate it,” says Ms. Allen.
The Silverwater Security Operations Group is an intimidating sight as they are shown marching towards the random cell.
Hank’s sniffer dog is trained to detect lithium and helps discover cell phones
The detainees did not wait for the canine unit to register
The Metropolitan Detention and Reception Center maximum security correctional facility in Silverwater (pictured) houses dangerous offenders
The convicted murderers and rapists quickly carried out the instructions.
‘They make our job much easier. We simply couldn’t do it without them.”
Labrador Sassy is a passive alert drug sniffing dog, while Border Collie Hank is a phone sniffing dog that has been highly trained to detect lithium.
Then there are the Belgian Malinois Toa and the German Shepard Bruno, both versatile dogs, which include protection skills.
You can be sure that their barks are no worse than their bites.
Ms. Allen’s team is the first to be deployed into conflicts, riots and hostage situations after having risen from other departments to highly skilled positions.
Bruno’s lone bark echoes down the hallway, alerting the prisoners of his pending arrival, the air thick with anticipation.
The inmates are ordered to march, two by two, to the courtyard where a single cell block of 45 men, who had finished working for the day, are basking in the sun.
It’s an intimidating sight and its presence is clearly respected as the men immediately look towards the fence with their hands raised.
Sassy is trained in drug detection and took a look at the cell.
Buprenorphine transdermal patches have a high prison value and are easy to smuggle due to their size.
This improvised prison knife was made from parts of a window frame
This potentially lethal weapon was found hidden in a Bible
Mobile phones are highly valued on the prison black market
Inmates housed at this facility have committed varying degrees of serious crimes, from assault and drug crimes to serious sexual crimes and murder.
The prescription drug buprenorphine, known as ‘bupe’, is currently the biggest smuggling problem facing Australia’s prisons.
Used for pain management and addictions to opioids such as heroin, it is a low-cost $5 patch, but can be worth up to $1,000 per strip for desperate prisoners if supplies are scarce.
Intelligence officer Mandeep Singh says bupe could flood the prison black market because of its strong effects and how easy it is to hide.
‘Every day we are monitoring the activity. Listen to phone calls, check incoming and outgoing mail, give warnings and try to intercept anything that could pose a threat.
“If prisoners are caught with contraband, we find out where it came from and how they obtained it.”
All inmates at Silverwater Metropolitan Detention and Reception Center have access to iPads and are allocated an hour of mental wellbeing calls each day.
But illicit mobile phones remain the hot commodity.
Previous contraband found in prison
“Some prisoners have AVOs and are prohibited from contacting people,” explains Immediate Action Team corrections officer Patrick Boyd.
And others use them to organize their crime. Phones are getting smaller these days and harder to find.’
Sassy stops, has found her target, and is rewarded for her “good work” before two men are pulled from the line, quickly put their hands behind their backs, and taken to their cells for a “shake-up.”
The small room is clean and tidy, with commercial quantities of canned tuna, Powerade, and popcorn neatly stacked in the corner.
“Food is a valuable commodity in prison,” explains one officer. “They can work and earn money to buy it or their family can deposit money into their account.”
The dogs sweep the room in seconds, but give no indication that anything is wrong. The prisoner returns to the yard.
But although no contraband was found today, these impromptu searches are invaluable in keeping inmates in line.
“In recent years we have seen an increase in drugs and impressive but dangerous weapons,” says Officer Boyd.
‘We have found weapons made from part of a window frame, a sandwich maker, razor blades and even a melted toothbrush.
“It’s problematic because prisoners start accumulating debt and everything can be used as currency in prison.”