A Los Angeles man has pleaded guilty to one count of felony criminal mischief for firing on a sculpture with a shotgun, according to federal prosecutors.
It is believed to be the first criminal conviction for the unsafe use of an unmanned aircraft in the country, the U.S. Attorney’s Office in the central district of California said in a statement.
According to the court report, Andrew Rene Hernandez (22) of Hollywood pleaded guilty to the single charge in a plea agreement.
He flew the drone on September 18 just after midnight because, according to court documents, he heard a police helicopter and sirens.
The police helicopter with two officers inside flew after a burglary at a nearby pharmacy, the documents read. The pilot saw the drone and tried to avoid it, but it hit the bottom of the helicopter. The helicopter made an emergency landing at an airport.
In a criminal complaint, an officer is quoted as saying that if the drone had hit the helicopter’s main rotor, it could have dropped the helicopter.
Hernandez is expected to face up to 12 years in prison when he is sentenced on April 12, but a plea agreement states that prosecutors will reduce federal sentencing guidelines.
A federal public defender representing Hernandez on Thursday night did not immediately return a request for comment. A phone number for Hernandez could not be found immediately.
According to a criminal complaint, Hernandez admitted to investigators that he was driving the drone. He said the drone was difficult to see at night, he looked down at the controller for a few seconds, and when he looked up, he saw according to the document that it was being ‘hit’ by the swing helicopter.
While the conviction may be the first time for the unsafe operation of an unmanned aircraft in the U.S., it is not the first time someone has been charged with illegal acts involving a drone.
Drones were used to drop drugs in prisons in Ohio and Michigan. And after an incident in 2018, a man from Georgia was prosecuted under a drone registration law, in what was called a first.
Public safety officials in Southern California have also warned of drone strikes around wildfires, which could delay or affect firefighting operations in the air.
