Eric Lee Brown, Drone Delivery, Georgia 2020

Eric Lee Brown, a notorious drone operator, has been sentenced to 48 months in federal prison for attempting to use a drone to deliver marijuana to a state prison in Georgia. This brazen crime highlights the growing threat of drones in our skies.

The crime occurred in October of last year, and Brown was subsequently charged with violating 49 U.S.C. § 46307, a national defense airspace Temporary Flight Restriction (TFR). This is a serious offense, and Brown’s sentence reflects the severity of the crime.

According to the FBI, dozens of events were protected from UAS threats, including the 2020 Rose Bowl Game, Washington, D.C.’s A Capitol Fourth, and New York City’s New Year’s celebration. During this time, over 200 UAS were detected flying in national security airspace restricted by the Administrator of the Federal Aviation Administration, and corrective action was taken.

Operators who violate national security-related flight restrictions face serious consequences, including criminal charges. This past fiscal year, authorities arrested and charged drone operators, including Brown, with violating TFRs. In the lead-up to Super Bowl LIV, two drone operators were charged with flying drones in national defense airspace in the Southern District of Florida.

The FBI has also seized about a dozen UAS based on violations of flight restrictions at events during fiscal year 2020. The department is committed to preventing and prosecuting the increased use of drones for criminal purposes, including smuggling contraband into federal and state prisons.

Other cases illustrate the department’s effort to prevent, deter, and prosecute the use of drones to facilitate violence. Jason Muzzicato, who used an unregistered drone to drop improvised explosive devices in the Eastern District of New York, received a five-year prison sentence. These cases demonstrate the FBI’s commitment to ensuring public safety at special events.

The use of drones presents a serious challenge to ensuring public safety, and the FBI is working tirelessly to address this threat. The public is reminded that operating UAS in national security airspace is a serious offense and can result in severe consequences, including arrest and prosecution.

As events return to normal, the FBI will continue to work with its partners from the Federal Aviation Administration and the Department of Homeland Security to protect the public from unsafe, careless, or malicious drone operators. The public is urged to report any suspicious UAS activity to the authorities immediately.

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