Daron Mitchell (29, East Chicago) and Juwan Mitchell (25, Chicago) face multiple charges in LaPorte County after allegedly trying to smuggle drugs into Indiana State Prison in Michigan City using a drone.
This marks another smuggling attempt via drone, but unlike earlier failed efforts at other facilities, this one targeted Indiana State Prison directly.
Related posts
The charges include:
- Dealing in a Schedule III controlled substance
- Trafficking with an inmate
- Felony dealing in marijuana
- Misdemeanor resisting law enforcement
- Misdemeanor possession of marijuana
Court documents reveal a prison employee detected a drone on May 14 and traced its flight to a wooded area near the facility. Officers searching the woods soon spotted the drone landing nearby. Moments later, they heard movement in the brush and saw two men dressed in black running across railroad tracks.
Police apprehended the suspects a few blocks from the prison. A backpack, believed to have been dropped by one of the suspects while fleeing, was found near a fence along the 200 block of Columbia Street.
Inside the backpack, authorities found:
- Over 225 grams of marijuana
- More than 200 strips of buprenorphine and naloxone film
- A cell phone
- Cigars, cigarettes, a lighter, and a vape
- Drone equipment, including a remote control, two batteries, and a power cord
Jail records show Juwan Mitchell posted a $15,000 cash bond and is set for an initial court appearance on May 23.
Daron Mitchell’s bond was reduced from $15,000 to $1,500, which he posted following his May 16 hearing. As a condition of his release, he must wear a GPS monitor.
This case follows two other drone-related smuggling attempts at Westville Correctional Facility on March 2 and April 3, both of which led to arrests.
Daron Mitchell (29, East Chicago) and Juwan Mitchell (25, Chicago) face multiple charges in LaPorte County after allegedly trying to smuggle drugs into Indiana State Prison in Michigan City using a drone.
This marks another smuggling attempt via drone, but unlike earlier failed efforts at other facilities, this one targeted Indiana State Prison directly.
The charges include:
-
Dealing in a Schedule III controlled substance
-
Trafficking with an inmate
-
Felony dealing in marijuana
-
Misdemeanor resisting law enforcement
-
Misdemeanor possession of marijuana
Court documents reveal a prison employee detected a drone on May 14 and traced its flight to a wooded area near the facility. Officers searching the woods soon spotted the drone landing nearby. Moments later, they heard movement in the brush and saw two men dressed in black running across railroad tracks.
Police apprehended the suspects a few blocks from the prison. A backpack, believed to have been dropped by one of the suspects while fleeing, was found near a fence along the 200 block of Columbia Street.
Inside the backpack, authorities found:
-
Over 225 grams of marijuana
-
More than 200 strips of buprenorphine and naloxone film
-
A cell phone
-
Cigars, cigarettes, a lighter, and a vape
-
Drone equipment, including a remote control, two batteries, and a power cord
Jail records show Juwan Mitchell posted a $15,000 cash bond and is set for an initial court appearance on May 23.
Daron Mitchell’s bond was reduced from $15,000 to $1,500, which he posted following his May 16 hearing. As a condition of his release, he must wear a GPS monitor.
This case follows two other drone-related smuggling attempts at Westville Correctional Facility on March 2 and April 3, both of which led to arrests.
