Unidentified drones cause concern, confusion for New Jersey residents

On By Littum

FBI chief says it’s ‘concerning’ how little his agency knows about mysterious drones seen over NJ

,

A top FBI official revealed that the agency knows worryingly little about the mysterious drones that have been seen hovering over New Jersey.

Asked whether Americans are “at risk,” the FBI’s Assistant Director of the Critical Incident Response Group, Robert Wheeler, told Congress: “There’s nothing that’s known that would make me say that, but we just don’t know. And that’s the concerning part.”

Dozens of drones have been seen flying near sensitive sites like a military research facility in recent weeks.

The FBI has been investigating the incidents and has appealed to the public for additional information.

According to Gov. Phil Murphy, there were 49 reports of drones on Sunday alone, mostly in Hunterdon County.

The FBI assistant director’s comments came during a joint hearing of two Homeland Security subcommittees on unmanned aerial systems.

“We’re not attributing it to an individual or a group yet. We’re looking into it, but I don’t have an answer as to who is responsible for it by one or more individuals responsible for these drone flights,” Wheeler said.

“It’s crazy, it’s crazy that we don’t know what these drones are,” said Rep. Anthony Gonzales, R-Texas.

“There are a lot of Americans who are very frustrated right now who are essentially questioning where my taxpayer dollars are going,” he added, asking Wheeler how much of the FBI budget goes to counter-drone efforts.

About $500,000, Wheeler replied, goes to counter-drone technology and its deployment to the FBI.

“No wonder we don’t know what the hell is going on!” replied the congressman.

A top border official also revealed at the hearing that over the past six weeks, Customs and Border Patrol (CBP) sensors recorded 6,900 drone flights near US borders, potentially endangering the lives of CBP officers, some of whom had been carrying drugs.

CBP could not engage with about 95 percent of these drones because they did not breach US airspace but hovered just near the border.

Keith Jones, CBP chief of Air and Marine Operations, revealed that no money had been allocated to CBP for counter-drone procedures.

This is an excerpt from an article by Morgan Phillips.