Crime in the skies: Mexico cracks down on drone threats with stiff penalties
In light of recent concerns, Mexico’s President, Andrés Manuel López Obrador, has introduced legislation targeting the illicit use of drones, suggesting up to 60 years of imprisonment for offenders.
This move is largely in response to criminal organizations deploying airborne systems to release explosives, particularly in the Apatzingán region of Michoacán.
While employing drones for such means isn’t a novel tactic, with aerial evidence of such attacks being around for over a year, there’s a rising alarm due to the increasing frequency of such incidents.
Locals have captured these episodes on video, some warning peers about the imminent threat of “drone attacks.”
The Secretariat of National Defense (Sedena) disclosed that they’ve seized 23 drones in the past year.
Many of these devices, originally designed by the Chinese company DJI for agricultural tasks like fertilization or pest control, have been repurposed by criminal groups to target authorities, civilians, and rival factions.
To counteract this, Mexican federal forces are actively employing measures to disable unmanned aerial vehicles and neutralize any attached explosives.
Sedena’s head, Luis Crescencio Sandoval, expressed during a press briefing that the main aim of the new legislation is to impose strict penalties on those leveraging drones for explosive deployment.
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