Illegally-flown drone hits NYPD officer on head during rabbi’s funeral

In fact, two NYPD officers working crowd control during a well-known rabbi’s funeral were injured today. One NYPD officer was hit on the head by an illegally-flown drone, while the other was injured when the hearse ran over his leg in Brooklyn, NY.

Illegally-flown drone hits NYPD officer on the head

The police officer who was struck by the hearse suffered a broken ankle according to the NYPD. The other officer who was hit on the head by the illegally-flown drone suffered minor injuries.

“There was a drone that came out of the sky and hit a police officer,” NYPD police commissioner James P. O’Neill said, according to NBC New York. “The drone apparently ran out of gas… and it landed on the officer’s head.”

According to the Daily News, the drone pilot had told the police that he was trying to land the aircraft on a rooftop, but wasn’t proficient at flying it. A police source said that the drone operator ‘only had the drone for a week.’

The NYPD took the drone pilot in custody, and he might be facing possible assault charges, according to police.

It is illegal to fly a drone in any of the five boroughs of New York City, although this is based on a decades-old law and many industry experts question if it would hold up in the court of law. To fly your drone legally in New York City, there are only five parks where this is allowed.

Earlier today, two @NYPDnews officers were injured while helping our community give kovod to the Skulener Rebbe zatzal. I am always grateful for their service and hoping they both have a speedy recovery.

— Kalman Yeger (@KalmanYeger) April 2, 2019

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Photo: Gardiner Anderson for New York Daily News