Remote-controlled drones have become increasingly popular since they were first made available to the public as hobby toys. Released to be enjoyed for fun, drones are sold across the world in various toy and hobby stores to a range of people. However, as well as being increasingly used for fun, they are also increasingly used in criminal activities too.
Statistics in the United Kingdom, obtained from Freedom of Information requests, show that crimes involving drones rose by 352% between the years of 2014 to 2015, which is proof that more measures need to be taken to protect the public against these machines and the people behind them.
One significant incident that occurred in June 2015 involved a drone being used to film innocent people entering their pin numbers at cash machines. A witness to this crime in Templepatrick advised the police that when the drone was spotted by someone, it quickly flew off. Unfortunately for the drone, it crashed into a taxi. A male suspect was forced to pay compensation to the taxi driver for the crash, but police were unable to prove that the footage from the drone was being taken with criminal intent, so no charge was made on that count.
The problem is that these drones, some of which have cameras twice the quality of HD, are available to the public without any restrictions whatsoever. Capable of reaching speeds of up to 70mph and altitudes of up to 10,000 feet, should there not be more regulations in place for owning these drones? Not only are they a potential threat to aircraft, but they are also used for transporting drugs in and out of prisons too. Sexual offenses involving drones have also been reported and include drones hovering over schools and a case in Wales where a drone was used to record a woman undressing in her apartment. Many feel that the current laws in place are not adequate for prosecuting crimes that involve drones, and are pushing for an adequate law to be created.
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