Drone attack on prison: Ecuador has legislation to demolish, but lacks technology to do so | security News

The intrusion of drones flying over the April Regional Prison in Guayaquil is nothing new. As a prelude to the attacks that occurred during the morning of Monday, September 13, there is an explosion in the air of another device in the same unit that occurred last June, which was revealed a month later by the Police in the middle of the prison crisis in Ecuador.

On that occasion, Criminalística was preparing to determine what kind of device had been used to violate this airspace which is considered a restricted area in accordance with the Regulations governing the “Operation of Remotely Piloted Aircraft” within the Civil Aviation Act. But the results, if any, have not been made public.

Now, three months later, antisocial drone operators have again taken by surprise in this same prison the National Comprehensive Care Service for Adults Deprived of Liberty and Adolescent Offenders (SNAI). It was no longer one, there were three explosions that occurred on Monday morning and that, although it left no injuries, aimed to eliminate “gang leaders”, according to the entity.

The said regulation states that drones may not be operated within 9 kilometers of the boundaries or boundaries of any aerodrome or security areas of the State. They are also not allowed to activate at a distance of less than 150 meters from the centers of deprivation of liberty.

“The competent public or private entities, as appropriate, will have the power to apply the right of inhibition or overthrow (antidron technology) or take necessary action, when one fails to comply with the provisions of this regulation “says letter g of this regulation, issued on August 30, 2020 and reformed on November 4 of the same year.

Is there a drone inhibitor in prisons?

The director of Regional Center April Guayas, Jorge Fes, states that the site does have inhibitors for this type of device, but the drones that caused three explosions on Monday morning had to have a technology that did not go be able to be detected in time.

Expert pilots in drones such as Martín Zivadinovic, champion of the National Race, freestyle category, organized in Salines for the 100th anniversary of the Ecuadorian Air Force, say that although Ecuador has legislation banning the use of drones near people, at night or on strategic places such as airports, ports, national security zones or prisons, this does not prevent the misuse of these devices.

Zivadinovic, who shares his passion for drones with his business at Chess Pizza, believes he knows how antisocials were able to evade the inhibitors that exist in prisons.

“A simple wifi inhibitor would be enough to block the signal of a drone, but if it is sent to it from a nearby place controlled only by GPS, turning off all other communication commands, here the inhibitor signal would not work, here the drone would no longer have a chance to return to where it left off and become a flying bomb, “warns the expert.

Civil Aviation issued regulations for drone operation in Ecuador

The explosive charge should be activated by radio frequency, a different signal from that operated by the drone, so it is necessary to use better technology to detect these activities.

In Ecuador, there is only one brand of drones that comes, from the factory, with an indicator that inhibits their flight over certain special areas on a map. But the other brands marketed in the country have no warnings or restrictions.

Security expert John Garaycoa says there is no need to stigmatize the technology, as drones are used for activities such as security, as do rescue firefighters or the ECU911 to monitor crowds on beaches, for photo and video productions, for the distribution of goods, monitoring of civil engineering works or for aerial irrigation of crops.

“Drones have all kinds, from the ones you get in a toy store to the ones the U.S. Army has. With technology available, drug traffickers won’t hesitate to use it to their advantage.” “If we see that they use planes to transport drugs, why shouldn’t they use drones?” explains the Mac Security manager.

He believes these drone raids are known because they have exploded in the air over prisons, but he is sure other devices have already been used before to put drugs and weapons.

anti-drone technology

The American defense company Epirus has created a system that uses a high-energy beams that can penetrate the drones’ brains, affect their components even if they are shielded from radiation and make them fall to the ground.

According to ‘New Scientist’, the system called Leonidas dropped 66 military drones in a recent test with the United States Army. It did so both in groups, disabling dozens of them simultaneously, and individually.

The American company is working on a more compact system that could be carried in a backpack or even by another drone.

Last June, the agency AP reported that the Israeli Army also successfully tested, on the Mediterranean Sea, a high-powered aerial laser capable of shooting down drones.

In Guayaquil, meanwhile, Zivadinovic and Garaycoa believe that in the absence of better anti-drone technology, the ideal would be direct surveillance, as is done in control towers when planes approach the runway at the airport.

Antisocials “could have bought a drone and added an explosive device to send it crashing into prison,” warns an SNAI official who prefers to reserve his name and believes that, in effect, a best technology for air control. “It’s known all over the country that we’re missing a budget.” In August, the government announced a $ 75 million investment to restructure the prison system.

But the director of the Regional Guayas maintains that at least the equipment that they own at the moment prevented that the drones could lower and that for that reason the explosions in the air were registered. Although there was damage to the roofs, no one was injured, says the SNAI, which described the incident as serious: “We are in the middle of a war between international cartels.” (I)