Drones attempt to smuggle drugs into Calipatria State Prison

IMPERIAL, Calif. (KYMA, KECY) - We're learning more about how two suspects tried to smuggle drugs into Calipatria State Prison by using a drone.

Even though that might sound unique, law enforcement says it's seeing this more and more every day.

“They weren’t close to it. However, they flew the drone to the location and they were able to follow the drone and locate the suspects. They were two of them, one was an adult and one was a juvenile," said George Marquez, Imperial County District Attorney.

The district attorney said the suspects were arrested last Monday after dropping a package into a secured area of the prison.

Inside, there was marijuana and meth worth several thousand dollars.

“30 thousand valued in prison of drugs, in addition they were caught as well," explained Marquez.

Multiple law enforcement agencies were involved in the investigation including the Calipatria State Prison, the District Attorney's Office and the Imperial County Sheriff’s office.

The DA’s office says the use of drones to try to smuggle drug into state prisons has turned into a very common issue.

“It’s become a problem. That's why we are cracking down on this and we are going to send a clear message that anybody that comes to the Imperial County to drop off drugs anywhere is not going to be tolerated," said Marquez.

We reached out to the Calipatria State Prison for comment but they were not available.

This incident remains under investigation.