Current problems of legal liability for the transfer of prohibited items in penal institutions

The article examines legal and organizational problems of combating the illegal transfer of prohibited items to penal institutions of Russia. The amendments to legislation adopted in 2023 are analyzed, which strengthened administrative liability under Article 19.12 of the Code of Administrative Offenses and introduced criminal liability under Article 321.1 of the Criminal Code for repeated transfer of mobile communication devices. Based on statistical data of the Federal Penitentiary Service of Russia and regional departments for 2022–2025, the main methods of delivering prohibited items (through relatives, lawyers, throwing over fences, using unmanned aerial vehicles), categories of offenders and their motivation are identified. It is established that despite the tightening of sanctions, gaps in legal regulation remain: criminal liability does not apply to the repeated transfer of stabbing and cutting objects and alcohol, and the threat of applying Article 321.1 of the Criminal Code does not affect «one-time» relatives who can hire other persons for subsequent transfers. It is proposed to expand the subject matter of the crime under Article 321.1 of the Criminal Code to include items that pose a threat of violence or security of the institution, as well as to introduce liability for organizing repeated transfer.

1. Federal Law No. 596-FZ dated 19.12.2023 «On Amendments to the Code of Administrative Offenses of the Russian Federation».

2. Code of Administrative Offences of the Russian Federation No. 195-FZ dated 12/30/2001.

3. Penal Enforcement Code of the Russian Federation No. 1-FZ dated 01/08/1997.

4. Criminal Procedure Code of the Russian Federation dated 18.12.2001 No. 174-FZ.

5. Federal Law No. 597-FZ dated 12/19/2023 «On Amendments to the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation Articles 31 and 150 of the Code of Criminal Procedure of the Russian Federation».

6. Order No. 110 of the Ministry of Justice of the Russian Federation dated 07/04/2022 «On Approval of the Internal Regulations of Pre-Trial Detention Facilities of the Penal System, The Rules of Internal Regulations of correctional institutions and the Rules of Internal Regulations of correctional centers of the penal system».

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8. Seliverstov V.I. Mobile Communications as a Criminal Factor in Prisons // Penitentiary System: Law, Economics, Management. 2021. No. 2. Pp. 14–18.

9. Romanov A.F. The use of unmanned aerial vehicles in the delivery of prohibited items to the territory of correctional facilities and possible ways to combat them // Criminal Justice. 2022. No. 19. Pp. 97–100.

10. Kostarev D.F. Prevention of the entry of prohibited items into correctional facilities of the penal system of the Russian Federation // Bulletin of the Perm Institute of the Federal Penitentiary Service of Russia. Actual issues of legal science. 2019. Issue 2 (33). Pp. 41–47.

11. GIAC of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of the Russian Federation. Summary report on the state of crime in the Russian Federation for 2015–2022. https://MVD.RF/reports)

12. Official statistics of the Federal Penitentiary Service of Russia. https://fsin.gov.ru/statistics (accessed on 09.04.2026).

13. In 2025, 13 attempts were made to smuggle phones or drugs into a prison in the Tula region // TSN24. 2025.https://www.tsn24.ru/ (accessed on 09.04.2026).

14. More than 40 prohibited items were not allowed into the Rybinsk colony. https://www.rybinsknote.ru/2025 (accessed on 09.04.2026).

15. In the Penza region, 15 mobile phones were not allowed to the convicts. https://news.rambler.ru/incidents/54022651 (accessed on 09.04.2026).