Washington County Sheriff’s Office ramps up fight against drone contraband drops

 The Washington County Sheriff's Office is ramping up its efforts to combat the growing issue of drone contraband drops at Washington State Prison in Davisboro. 

SANDERSVILLE, Georgia (41NBC/WMGT) — The Washington County Sheriff’s Office is ramping up its efforts to combat the growing issue of drone contraband drops at Washington State Prison in Davisboro. 

Since the start of the year, the sheriff’s office has reported five drop attempts and has made 11 arrests.

Sheriff Cochran calls the criminal behavior a “public safety hazard.”

He says some of the individuals are being recruited to make drops for inmates and that they’re being lured by the promise of making a good amount of money.  

Cochran wants the public to know that crossing the guard line with prohibited items could lead to felony charges, resulting in up to 20 years in prison, depending on the contraband involved. 

He says this criminal act makes for an unsafe environment not only for inmates but also for staff and nearby residents.

“We have a lot of innocent residents and people that live around this prison that don’t want this traffic on their property or around their homes because it violates their privacy, and oftentimes these people are armed with weapons when we arrest them,” he said.

Cochran says 21 drone drops were recorded last year, with more than 40 arrests made. If current trends continue, he predicts this year’s statistics will exceed last year’s.

He believes new technology being implemented by his office has been effective in catching more offenders.

“It is against the law, and you’re not welcome in our communities,” he said. “What I want them to understand is go find something else to do with their time, because we’re not going to stop, and we’re not going to give up. If they choose to commit these crimes, we’ll be ready to give them a warm welcome.”