FBI Dallas has issued several warnings after 18 drones violated temporary flight restrictions over Dallas Stadium and Fan Fest during the World Cup's opening weekend.
According to NBC DFW, less than 30 minutes before the Netherlands vs. Japan match on Sunday, a Federal Air Marshal was notified of a drone operating within temporary flight restriction airspace. The pilot was operating the drone about two miles from Dallas Stadium, within the three-mile radius of the temporary flight restriction.
The drone was not registered and the pilot, 33-year-old Luis Mauricio Flores Ordonez, faces a federal charge for allegedly owning and willfully operating an unregistered drone.
United States Attorney for the Northern District of Texas Ryan Raybould previously warned drone operators about flying near World Cup no-fly zones stating, “f you fly a drone over Dallas Stadium during the World Cup games, we will make swift use of our federal statutes to charge you.”
Raybould says that law enforcement officials must treat every unauthorized drone as a potential threat. "If you could put yourself in the shoes of law enforcement, we don't know what payload is on that," he said. "As we look at the drone, we don't know what the motive is, but these men and women out here and up here have to interdict that."
At least 18 drones were seized from operators in Dallas, and 112 overall across all World Cup host cities.
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