Deputies arrest Spring Valley palm tree arson suspect with help from drones
Sheriff’s deputies used a drone to track down an arson suspect who allegedly set a palm tree on fire last month, forcing temporary neighborhood evacuations, authorities said Wednesday.
The San Diego County Sheriff’s Office received a call just after 6:30 p.m. May 25 about a man using a lighter to set a tree on fire near the Spring Valley Swap Meet in the 6000 block of Quarry Road, according to the agency.
Officials said the fire threatened nearby homes, prompting residents along the 8800 block of Spring Canyon Drive to temporarily evacuate.
As deputies from the Rancho San Diego Sheriff’s Station and California Highway Patrol officers searched the ground, a deputy with the Sheriff’s Unmanned Aerial Systems Program launched a drone over a riverbed behind Quarry Road.
“The deputy that flew was able to still see the suspect in the same general area, in that dense vegetation and able to identify who it was,” Deputy Tyler Muzic told NBC 7.
The drone located the suspect and tracked his movements. The UAS pilot relayed the information to a sheriff’s ASTREA helicopter before grounding the drone so firefighting aircraft could safely extinguish the flames, the agency reported.
Deputies arrested Miguel Hernandez, 35, a short time later near the interchange of state Routes 125 and 54.
The Sheriff’s UAS Program was established in 2016 with a small team of remote pilots and a limited number of drones. Over the past decade, the program has expanded to include more than 60 certified remote pilots and a fleet of more than 70 aircraft.
Deputies serve as drone pilots as a collateral duty in addition to their normal patrol assignments. To qualify, they must earn a Federal Aviation Administration Part 107 Remote Pilot Certificate and complete the department’s UAS training course.
“I’m grateful in this case it caught the culprit and prevented future instances of this happening again,” resident Eddie Avalos said, adding, “It’s a double-edged sword that in this instance, it served the public good, but at same time you want to make sure the tech is in the right hands because that could easily be turned in another direction quickly.”
“I was happy to hear that they used drones and that they actually caught the individual,” said another neighbor, Ron Smith. “That was a selfish act, a really immature act.”
In addition to supporting law enforcement operations such as search warrants, search and rescue missions and crime scene documentation, the drones are used to assist first responders during emergencies. All missions are governed by FAA rules and department policies, the agency said.
“Being able to apprehend them quicker is definitely going to help the community and keep it safer,” Deputy Muzik said.
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