Palestinian youth caught smuggling phones to security prisoners

Border Police officers arrested a Palestinian teen two weeks ago on suspicion of smuggling cellphones to Palestinian security prisoners held at Ofer Prison north of Jerusalem, police say today.

The 18-year-old suspect was caught carrying eight phones, five phone keyboards, 19 SIM cards, and a memory card into the prison.

Military prosecutors filed an indictment earlier today in the Ofer Military Prison that says he was paid some NIS 20,000 for the smuggling attempt.

The indictment details an elaborate plan by the youth, who apparently sought to get caught by Israeli security forces and find himself taken to the prison. He was caught on November 15 attempting to sneak into Israel at the Qalandiya checkpoint north of Jerusalem and carrying a 5.56-millimeter rifle bullet on his person. He was taken to Ofer Prison, where alert Prisons Service officers discovered the phones and devices hidden on his person and intended for delivery to prisoners inside the facility.