Drug seizures double at HMP Winchester as hooch and smuggling surge

Drug finds at HMP Winchester rose 114% in a year, with half of tested prisoners positive in February. Hundreds of litres of homemade alcohol were also seized.

Drug crisis deepens at HMP Winchester as seizures more than double

Drug seizures at HMP Winchester in Hampshire have more than doubled in the space of a year, according to a report by the prison's Independent Monitoring Board (IMB), as bbc.com reports that staff are struggling to contain what monitors describe as "widespread" substance abuse.

In February, half of all prisoners subjected to mandatory drug testing at the prison returned positive results. Drugs found during searches rose by 114% over the 12-month period ending in May, equating to 1.56kg per 1,000 prisoners — a figure the IMB described as "generally higher" than that of many comparable institutions.

The scale of the crisis extends beyond controlled substances. Prisoners are brewing "hooch", a potent alcoholic drink produced by fermenting foods such as fruit and sugar. In the year to the end of May, 331 litres were discovered and confiscated — up from 276 litres in the previous 12-month period.

Overcrowded and understaffed

The IMB report describes a facility under severe strain. HMP Winchester is overcrowded, understaffed, and inmates are confined to their cells for approximately 21 hours a day. The board believes the true scale of the drug problem is reflected in the number of recorded "code blue" emergencies — the term used when a prisoner is found not breathing — many of which are thought to result from substance abuse.

Efforts to close off supply routes have had limited success. Despite what the IMB described as concerted attempts to "work more closely with the police", reports of drugs being delivered by drone or thrown over prison walls have increased. Drugs being smuggled in on prisoners themselves also remains a concern, the board noted, even though "nearly all" inmates are subject to x-ray body scanning on entry. Intelligence has also indicated a need to search prisoners when they leave the prison, the report added.

Drug-soaked paper is an increasingly common method of smuggling illicit substances. When the BBC was previously granted access to film inside the prison, staff were seen swabbing letters sent to inmates, using an itemiser machine to check whether ink had been "infused" with synthetic drugs such as spice or other illegal substances. The practice is referenced again in this week's IMB report, alongside other smuggling methods and what the board calls the "coercion of vulnerable" prisoners — a practice known as "cuckooing".

Substance-free unit not yet effective

HMP Winchester already operates an "incentivised substance-free living" unit, which provides dedicated accommodation for prisoners who commit to abstaining from illicit drugs. However, the Prison Inspectorate found earlier this year that the unit was "not yet functioning effectively". The IMB report noted that prisoners on the unit were still able to mix with other inmates on the wing, undermining its purpose. A barrier has since been installed but was "still not fully operational" at the end of the reporting period.

The Ministry of Justice (MoJ) announced this week that it would expand the substance-free living scheme to a further 12 prisons across England and Wales by 2028, after acknowledging it had "inherited a prison system in crisis".

Beyond Winchester, the IMB report comes amid wider warnings about drug use in custody. A Justice Committee report concluded that a "persistent lack of purposeful activity and boredom" drives prisoners to use drugs, which in turn endangers lives, fuels violence and worsens existing mental health conditions. The Chief Inspector of Prisons has warned that the "overwhelming" volume of drugs being smuggled into prisons nationally was "destabilising" the system and hindering rehabilitation efforts.

Searches at Winchester also continued to turn up other prohibited items, including mobile phones, smoking paraphernalia and improvised weapons.

In a statement, the MoJ said: "We inherited a prison system in crisis but this report recognises the hard work of staff at HMP Winchester, whose efforts are helping to put this prison on a more stable footing." The ministry added that former Home Secretary Amber Rudd is leading an independent review of the prison system, aimed at developing a long-term plan to deliver safer prisons, reduce reoffending, and better protect the public.

Source: Google News IE — Crime (en)