A 39-year-old Chinese national who resides in Brentwood was arrested moments before boarding a flight to China for flying a drone over and photographing Vandenberg Space Force Base late last month, officials announced Monday.
According to a news release from the U.S. Department of Justice, Yinpiao Zhou, a Chinese citizen and lawful permanent resident of the U.S., was arrested Dec. 9 at San Francisco International Airport prior to his flight.
Federal investigators said that on Nov. 30, drone detection systems at Vandenberg in Santa Barbara County detected the unmanned aircraft flying at an altitude of nearly a mile above ground level for for almost an hour, with launch and return of the drone originating at Ocean Park, a public area near the base.
“Base security personnel went to the park, spoke to Zhou and another person accompanying him, and learned that Zhou had a drone concealed in his jacket – the same one that flew over the base,” the release stated.
After getting a federal search warrant, agents searched Zhou’s drone and found aerial photographs of Vandenberg. A further search of his phone revealed a Google search a month prior for the phrase “Vandenberg Space Force Base Drone Rules,” along with communication with another individual about hacking a drone so that it can fly at higher altitudes.
Authorities also noted that Zhou had most recently returned to the U.S. from China in February, while the person with him had only arrived from China on Nov. 26.
The 39-year-old has been charged with failing to register an aircraft that does not provide transportation and violation of national defense airspace.
If convicted as charged, Zhou would face a maximum sentence of four years in federal prison.
