Crime & Safety
Goodwin Fire: Man Charged With Flying Drone
Prosecutors say that Gene Alan Carpenter is charged with felony endangerment for flying a drone over the fire, putting firefighters at risk.
When fire officials say do not fly drones over wildfires, they are very serious. Gene Alan Carpenter of Prescott Valley now knows just how serious. In a complaint unsealed Thursday, he is charged with felony endangerment for doing just that,
Prosecutors say that the 54-year-old Carpenter hampered firefighting efforts and endangered fire crews and others by flying the drone in restricted airspace over the Goodwin Fire.
The Yavapai County Sheriff's Office says that the drone was spotted on June 24, the day after the fire was first reported.
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It was then seen several more times. (Subscribe to local news alerts on Patch).
On June 28, the same drone was seen by a firefighting plane forcing officials to immediately ground the 14 aircraft that had been in the air. That left ground crews unprotected for nearly one hour.
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A preliminary hearing has been scheduled for July 21.
On June 30, officials say that Carpenter's van was spotted near Prescott and a drone was located inside. The van was seized.
Photo Yavapai County Sheriff's Office
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