A Hollywood man has been arrested by the FBI for allegedly crashing a drone into an LAPD helicopter.
The LAPD helicopter had to make an emergency landing.
Andrew Rene Hernandez, 22, was arrested pursuant to a criminal complaint filed Wednesday that charges him with one count of unsafe operation of an unmanned aircraft, according to the U.S. Department of Justice.
The department said the case against Hernandez is believed to be the first criminal case in the nation alleging the unsafe operation of an unmanned aircraft.
According to the U.S. Department of Justice "The drone damaged the LAPD aircraft and the pilot was forced to initiate an emergency landing. The drone also damaged a vehicle when the unmanned aircraft fell from the sky after the crash."
"According to the complaint filed in United States District Court, during the early morning hours of September 18, LAPD officers responded to a burglary call at a pharmacy in Hollywood. The responding officers requested air support, and an LAPD helicopter flew toward the scene. As the helicopter approached the pharmacy, the pilot saw the drone and attempted to evade the unmanned aircraft. Despite the evasive efforts, the drone stuck the helicopter, forcing the pilot to initiate an emergency landing. The drone damaged the helicopter’s nose, antenna and bottom cowlings. According to the complaint, “if the drone had struck the helicopter’s main rotor instead of the fuselage, it could have brought the helicopter down.”