Vandalia man arrested for attempting to attack Audrain County Sheriff’s Office drone

Audrain County, Mo. (KMIZ)

A Vandalia man was arrested for allegedly attacking the Audrain County Sheriff's Office drone with another drone in an intentional attempt to cause a crash during a scheduled city-wide power outage, according to a press release.

Late Tuesday evening, members of the sheriff's office were assigned to patrol the City of Vandalia during the planned power outage.

During patrols, the sheriff's office drone pilot was observing the area with a drone that is equipped for forward-looking infrared.

On one of the pilot's observation flights, the sheriff's office says their drone was "attacked' by another drone in an intentional attempt to cause a crash, according to the sheriff's office.

Then, the pilot was able to evade the drone and locate the operator with the infrared camera. The pilot guided deputies to the operators' location and located Ryan D. Breden, 40, of Vandalia.

The night before the scheduled power outage, deputies made contact with Breden while he was walking the streets at 1 a.m., the sheriff's office said.

Breden was taken to the Audrain County Jail and is facing charges of attempted first-degree property damage and obstructing government operations.

According to the Audrain County Sheriff's Office, records of the incident have been forwarded to the Federal Aviation Administration.