BOSTON – Two men arrested after police said they were involved “dangerous drone operation” near Boston’s Logan Airport were released without bail following their arraignment on Monday.
Robert Duffy, 42, of Charlestown, and 32-year-old Jeremy Folcik of Bridgewater were arraigned Monday in Dorchester District Court. The men are accused of trespassing.
Duffy and Folcik were arrested Saturday evening on Long Island in Boston Harbor.
After a Boston police officer spotted the drone, he was able to track it to the closed Long Island Health Campus. Duffy and Folcik were arrested while a third suspect fled the island on a small boat. The police cannot yet say whether the person has been found.
“They had no business there,” the prosecutor said Monday.
CBS Boston
Drone arrests in Boston
During the arraignment, a judge ordered both men to stay away from Long Island and also ordered them not to operate drones.
Prosecutors did not ask for cash bail, saying the men do not have lengthy criminal records and are not considered a flight risk.
Duffy and Folcik are due back in court on February 6.
Drones in Massachusetts
Drone sightings have been reported in several Massachusetts communities in recent days.
Sightings were reported on Cape Cod as of Thursday evening. Additional reports came in from Marshfield, Natick and Tewksbury.
A small drone crashed at Nantucket Memorial Airport on Sunday morning. Nantucket officials describe the device as a “small multi-rotor drone” that can be purchased online and weighs about 0.55 pounds. For recreational use, the drone may not require registration through the FAA, officials said.
No flights were affected by the drone.
Massachusetts Governor Maura Healey said of the state’s recent drone sightings that officials are “closely monitoring the situation.”
Harwich Police Chief Kevin Considine told WBZ-TV it is difficult for local departments to monitor drone sightings.
“They are difficult to manage, and so the first thing we did today was to submit our report to our local federal government and state police partners so they could investigate,” Considine said.
Drones from New Jersey
New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy asked President Joe Biden for more help from the federal government after a series of mysterious cases drone sightings in the state.
Murphy told Biden in a letter that the public deserves “more concrete information” about what is happening in the air.
Why are drones dangerous?
Airline pilot Patrick Smith told WBZ-TV that it’s not likely that a small hobby drone could crash a plane, but said, “It’s possible.” Smith also added that there is also a possibility that a drone could cause millions of dollars in damage.
“I’m not saying it’s just a matter of time before a collision occurs between a commercial aircraft and a drone, but the likelihood of that happening is increasing,” Smith said.
