Crime & Safety
Man Arrested After Shooting Drone Out Of Air With Shotgun: SCPD
The 26-year-old shot at a drone that was being used to search for a missing dog, police say.
ST. JAMES, NY - A St. James man was arrested for shooting a drone out of the air from his front yard on Saturday, according to Suffolk Police.
Members of Missing Angels-Long Island, an organization that searches for missing pets, were using a Mavic 2 Zoom drone to search for a missing dog when the drone they were using became unresponsive at 4:45 p.m.
The group used the drone’s GPS to determine the drone was last above Rutherford Street in St. James, police said.
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Following an investigation, it was determined a resident of the home, 26-year-old Gerard Chasteen, fired three shotgun shots into the air from the yard of his home, striking the drone, police said.
Multiple shotguns were confiscated from the residence, police said.
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Chasteen was charged with third degree criminal mischief and prohibited use of a weapon.
He was issued a field appearance ticket and will be arraigned at a later date.
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