I expect savvy criminals won't have too many problems adopting a system where an aborted run causes the drone to automatically divert to a different recovery site, so that the operator has options on how and when they want to try getting it back.
I imagine the ideal location would be one where (A) the drone can sit unattended without being in casual view from passerby (B) it's hard for law-enforcement to set up an ambush (C) someone can walk/drive past without looking suspicious.
Come to think of it, that might be good operation-security even for regular runs, where the drone never returns to the same starting point. That way if someone sees where it came from, they don't necessarily know it will go, and vice-versa.
A path can be reasonably retraced using inertial guidance, if things aren't too windy.
It doesn't need to get all the way home, just far enough away in the right general direction without hitting an obstacle... And most prisons are not surrounded by skyscrapers.
I imagine the ideal location would be one where (A) the drone can sit unattended without being in casual view from passerby (B) it's hard for law-enforcement to set up an ambush (C) someone can walk/drive past without looking suspicious.
Come to think of it, that might be good operation-security even for regular runs, where the drone never returns to the same starting point. That way if someone sees where it came from, they don't necessarily know it will go, and vice-versa.