Two people were arrested on Saturday evening near Boston’s Logan Airport for what was described as a “hazardous drone operation,” police said, coming amid widespread reports of drones flying over the New Jersey region.
“The arrests were made on Long Island, part of the Boston Harbor Islands, following a hazardous drone operation near Logan Airport’s airspace,” police said. “Both suspects face charges of trespassing, with additional fines or charges potentially forthcoming.”
It’s not clear if the Logan Airport incident was related to drone sightings in recent weeks near New Jersey and New York City.
A Boston officer detected a drone “operating dangerously close to Logan International Airport” before finding the location of the unmanned aerial vehicle, police said. Police officials then coordinated with state police, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, and other federal agencies.
Members of the local Boston Police unit found three people in the Long Island Health Campus, which has been decommissioned.
“Upon attempting to make contact, the suspects fled on foot. Two of the three individuals were apprehended and identified as Duffy and Folcik. During the investigation, a drone was discovered inside a backpack carried by Duffy,” the news release said.
The other individual was not located or named in the news release. Officials said he is suspected to have fled in a “small vessel,” according to the news release.
Dozens of mysterious nighttime flights started last month over New Jersey, raising concerns among residents and officials. Part of the worry stems from the flying objects initially being spotted near the Picatinny Arsenal, a U.S. military research and manufacturing facility, and over Trump’s golf course in Bedminster, located in the state.
Drones are legal in New Jersey for recreational and commercial use and are subject to local and Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) regulations and flight restrictions. Operators must be certified by the FAA.
On Sunday, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) said he is urging the federal government to deploy better drone-tracking technology to identify them.
The New York Democrat is calling on the Department of Homeland Security to immediately deploy special technology that identifies and tracks drones back to their landing spots, according to his office.
“There’s a lot of us who are pretty frustrated right now,” Rep. Jim Himes (D-Conn.), the top Democrat on the House Intelligence Committee, told Fox News Sunday. “The answer ‘We don’t know’ is not a good enough answer.”
New York Gov. Kathy Hochul on Sunday said federal officials were sending a drone detection system to the state.
“This system will support state and federal law enforcement in their investigations,” Hochul said in a statement. The governor did not immediately provide additional details, including where the system will be deployed.
