A man in Copperas Cove, Texas, is facing multiple charges after allegedly shooting down a drone a roofing company was using to take video of a nearby roofing project, according to Fox 44 News.
On Oct. 14, Copperas Cove police received a complaint that a man had fired a shotgun in the direction of another man who had been working on the roof of a neighboring house.
After multiple officers responded to the call, the roofing worker said he had been using a drone to take marketing pictures for his roofing company when he heard a loud bang and saw a man on the neighboring property holding a shotgun. An arrest affidavit stated the roofing worker said the man with the shotgun yelled at him to “stay off his property.”
After the incident, the drone was inoperable, having sustained damage to the rotors, camera and antenna.
Jeffery Alan Spencer, the man who fired the weapon, was arrested on charges of deadly conduct discharge of a firearm; criminal mischief; use and discharge of a firearm in the city limits on certain property within the city; and possession of drug paraphernalia.
It reportedly is illegal to shoot drones in Texas because the Federal Aviation Administration classifies drones as aircraft, regardless of their size or purpose.
