Chinese national pleads guilty to flying modified drone over and taking pictures of Vandenberg SFB

Chinese national pleads guilty to flying modified drone over and taking pictures of Vandenberg SFB

LOS ANGELES, Calif. – Yinpiao Zhou, a Chinese national arrested for flying a modified drone and taking aerial photos of Vandenberg Space Force Base in December of last year, pleaded guilty to violating national defense airspace in U.S. District Court Monday. According to the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Central District of California, Zhou agreed to a plea agreement with their office and is currently scheduled for sentencing on April 7, 2025. …

Man From China Pleads Guilty to Flying Drone Over Vandenberg SFB

A man from China has pleaded guilty to a single misdemeanor charge related to flying a drone over Vandenberg Space Force Base last year. Yinpiao Zhou, 39, of Brentwood in Contra Costa County entered the guilty plea Monday morning in U.S. District Court in Los Angeles, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office. He was arrested in December and charged with failure to register an aircraft not providing transportation and violation of national defense…