ERMA – A Cape May County grand jury returned an indictment Aug. 25 against Russell Percenti, 33, for the charges of possession of a firearm for an unlawful purpose, a crime of the second degree and criminal mischief, a crime of the fourth degree, Cape May County Prosecutor Robert L. Taylor announced.
The indictment stems the Sept. 26, 2014 shooting down of a remote-control helicopter, also known as a “drone,” that was flying in the vicinity of Percenti’s home located in the 1000 block of Seashore Road in the Erma section of Lower Township. The owner of the drone, Leonard Helbig, of Villas, stated that it was being used to capture photographs of his friend’s house that was under construction.
While operating the drone, he heard numerous gunshots and simultaneously lost control of the drone. Upon retrieving the drone, he noticed it was damaged and called the Lower Township Police Department. The investigation resulted in the arrest of Percenti and the seizure of a shotgun.
Prosecutor Taylor advises that persons convicted of a second degree crime can be sentenced to five to 10 years in state prison and fourth degree crimes carry a sentence of up to 18 months in prison.
The individual is only charged with the offenses and is presumed innocent until proven guilty.
