Feds: Dealer Used Drone To Deliver Fentanyl
Female customer died after aerial drug drop
OCTOBER 16--A California man used a drone to deliver illegal narcotics to drug customers, one of whom died last year from a fentanyl overdose, according to a federal indictment unsealed today.
Investigators allege that Christopher Laney, 34, used an unregistered drone on multiple occasions to “transport and distribute narcotics” in Los Angeles County.
The nine-count indictment (excerpted here) alleges that Laney last year used a DJI brand drone to deliver fentanyl to a church parking lot near his home in Lancaster. There, the drug was picked up by an individual who subsequently provided it to a woman identified as “J.K.” in the charging instrument.
The woman died the following day of a drug overdose, according to the indictment.
The Drug Enforcement Administration’s probe of Laney yielded videos recorded by the $1000 drone showing other aerial narcotics distributions.
The videos were apparently seized during a DEA raid of Laney’s residence. Agents recovered fentanyl, methamphetamine, and three ghost guns (including an AR-15 style rifle).
Laney, who is scheduled to be arraigned this afternoon, faces a mandatory minimum of 25 years in prison if convicted of all charges, which include four counts of using an unmanned aircraft in furtherance of drug trafficking.
The drone Laney allegedly used was a DJI “first-person view” model, which allows the user to pilot the drone via a video feed to goggles. The manufacturer describes the product (seen above) as a “groundbreaking ready-to-fly” drone that “lets users of any skill level feel the thrill of immersive flight." (3 pages)
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