Korydallos prison: Drugs and home-brews
A few months ago, a petty drug dealer told a Piraeus magistrate that the surest market for drugs was within the walls of Korydallos prison. This came as no surprise, as it has long been common knowledge that anything is possible in the small «city-state» of Korydallos, between western Athens and Piraeus. Drug dealers have found the most ingenious ways of smuggling the goods past the guards and on to prisoners. Guards are quickly able to catch on to new methods of smuggling drugs inside, but the dealers say that even the few days before the latest tricks are discovered are worth their while, so profitable is the trade. These methods include fried potatoes steeped in heroin, roast chicken, steaks, tomatoes or fruit stuffed with drugs, even shoelaces and socks soaked in the white powder, that has led to a new stock phrase: «How much per centimeter?» A complete «still» has even been discovered hidden inside a prisoner’s cells, used for making bootleg wine and spirits of a quality that guards say would be the envy of many a professional and with an efficient «product distribution network.» A bucket was hidden in the corner of a cell, filled with plastic bags and a small water hose. Makeshift immersion heaters were connected to the power supply for heating the liquid. The whole apparatus was hidden under a blanket. Others have tried, unsuccessfully, to make their own wine. Inside a light well, guards discovered a huge bag, made out of many smaller bags sewn together and then onto a blanket, containing 420 kilos of must, made from scraps of fruit such as apples, pears and grapes, brought in by relatives during visiting hours. They hung the bag inside the light well but it was discovered before the fermentation process was complete.
