Drone Spots Suspect Hiding In Mangroves

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Oak Hill, FL - A suspect manages to tuck himself under a group of mangroves and out of the sight of deputies, but not out of the sight of the drone hovering above him.

Sometime around 7:30 Wednesday night (January 20th), deputies with the Volusia Sheriff's Office (VSO) went to investigate a suspicious vehicle parked at Seminole Rest Park off of River Road. As deputies were investigating, they watched as a man wearing a backpack rode a bicycle into the closed park.

The rider refused to stop and continued into the park. Eventually, a sergeant found both the bike and the backpack abandoned. Inside the backpack deputies reportedly found two bags of crystal meth.

At that point, deputies called in the help of the VSO Aerial Response Team. After a drone went airborne, it found the heat signature of 45-year-old Jeffrey Goodwin as he laid in the mangroves, out of the sight of the searching deputies. Goodwin was taken into custody without incident.

He was charged with possession of methamphetamine and also arrested on open warrants for violation of probation on previous charges of felony battery and tampering with a witness by preventing communication.