By Jon Shainman

MARTIN COUNTY, Florida (WPTV) -- The warden of Martin Correctional Institution reached out to the Martin County Sheriff's Office earlier this month over a growing problem.

Eight times in a two-week stretch, alleged drone drops were being made in the middle of the night, and it wasn't just cellphones and cigarettes getting in.

"Most concerning to them, they found some live rounds of ammunition in the prison," Martin County Sheriff John Budensiek said.

Detectives told WPTV they set up surveillance, and last Thursday, they noticed a constant green light flying in between the prison and a nearby work camp.

"This is the first time we went out there and actually sat there and watched someone fly a drone in," Budensiek said.

They tracked the drone to an SUV parked on the side of the road.

The suspect, identified as Kaheid Ash of West Palm Beach, was arrested and charged with introduction of contraband into a state facility.

"The drone was covered in tape, had black tape covering the blinking lights. He was dressed in all black," said the Sheriff.

WPTV reached out to the Florida Department of Corrections (FDC) for comment on the arrest.

In a statement, the FDC said, "This incident is a chilling reminder that the dangers posed by drones are immediate and real, endangering both our prisons and the communities surrounding them. We applaud the Martin County Sheriff's Office for their swift assistance, as well as our dedicated FDC employees who spotted and reported this encounter."

State correction leaders were just in Washington, D.C., last week, addressing this very topic before this arrest was made.

FDC Secretary Ricky Dixon went before the U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee to say the criminal use of drones is escalating and added they don't have the tools or legal authority to stop them.

The secretary added that when there is a drone incursion, they have to go on lockdown.

Budensiek said in the wake of a jail break in Louisiana, where 10 inmates escaped, it's important to be vigilant that stories making national news could also happen locally.

"It's our job, even though they're (the state prisons) a stand-alone system, to do our part to keep our county safe," Budensiek said.

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