Prison Drone Dope Operation Thwarted
Eric
Lee Brown, 35, pleaded guilty last week to federal charges related to
attempting to use a drone to deliver marijuana to inmates at Autry State Prison
in Pelham, Georgia. Brown, of Lithonia, Georgia, pleaded guilty to one count of
“operating an aircraft eligible for registration knowing that the aircraft is
not registered to facilitate a controlled substance offense.” He is facing a
maximum sentence of five years imprisonment, three years supervised release,
and a fine of $250,000. Brown admitted to attempting to use a DJI Phantom 4 to
deliver the drugs.
He
was arrested on March 29 after Mitchell County deputies responded to a
complaint of a vehicle impeding traffic near the prison. Brown was found inside
the vehicle with 294 grams of marijuana and the drone. Evidence later emerged
that Brown intended to use the unregistered aircraft to deliver marijuana to
prisoners. Brown does not hold a valid remote pilot’s certificate or an FAA
airman’s certificate as would be required to conduct commercial operations or
to be eligible to conduct unmanned aircraft operations beyond visual line of
sight.
Drone
delivery of contraband into prisons is becoming an increasing problem
nationwide. U.S. Attorney Charlie Peeler said his office “will aggressively
prosecute those who choose to smuggle cellphones, drugs, or any other
contraband into our state prisons.”
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