Ex-Con Arrested For Prison Drone Drops, Cops Say

MAY 23--An ex-con who spent nearly 20 years behind bars has been arrested for allegedly using a drone to drop contraband into a Florida prison yard, according to court records.

Investigators charge that Kaheid Ash, 46, flew the drone over the Martin County Institution around 2:45 AM Wednesday. The lockup houses about 1500 male inmates.

Due to a rash of recent predawn drone drops at the prison--eight times over the past two weeks--detectives began patrolling the area around the Indiantown facility. The prison’s “drone detection system” had identified a “common flight path” followed by a DJI brand drone suspected delivering contraband like phones and cigarettes.

On May 21, an investigator spotted a drone “in between the prison and the work camp” and followed it to a landing spot atop an SUV that had been parked on the side of a nearby road.

As the drone descended toward the vehicle, Ash--“dressed all in black”--exited the SUV and was subsequently detained for questioning. Some of the drone’s lights had been covered by black tape “to conceal how lit the drone would be at night,” cops noted, adding that the drone was outfitted with a payload release lever.

Ash (seen above) told cops he had been in the area of the prison to “practice flying his drone as there is no traffic” and claimed to have only been in prison’s vicinity once over the prior two weeks. However, Ash’s car was detected there by “law enforcement databases” (like traffic cams and license plate readers) on numerous occasions since late-April.

During this period, when contraband drops were discovered by jailers, the prison’s drone detection system showed a DJI model flying in the same path used this week by Ash.

While Ash claimed that noting was attached to the “lever system that allows packages to be dropped from the drone,” police concluded there was probable cause to charge him with attempted introduction of contraband into a correctional facility and flying a drone over a prison.

Illegal items introduced into a prison would “benefit a criminal gang inside of the prison as gang members are known to use contraband...to establish their control,” cops stated.

Ash, who lives about 40 miles from the prison, is being held without bond in advance of an initial court appearance. Florida Department of Corrections records show that Ash was released from state prison in 2017 after serving 19 years in custody for a series of armed robberies. (2 pages)