A Maine man is facing 34 federal charges for allegedly using drones armed with fireworks and explosives to injure people.
Joshua Brydon, 39, of Woodland, was indicted by a federal grand jury Wednesday on 34 charges. He is scheduled for a first appearance Thursday, Sept. 17, in U.S. District Court of Maine in Bangor. The charges come nearly two years after he was charged in state court.
Brydon is charged with one felony count each of transportation of explosives with intent to injure or intimidate any individual or to destroy property; and possession of an unregistered destructive device. He is charged with 14 felony counts of operating as an airman without an airman’s certificate; 16 felony charges of owning an aircraft that is knowingly operated when the aircraft is not registered; and two felony counts of operating an aircraft when the aircraft is not registered.
He was first arrested by Maine State Police in October 2024 after an 18-month-long investigation. He was allegedly using improvised explosives and incendiary devices to target people in the Aroostook County town he lived in.
Brydon had a pallet of assorted fireworks that he used to injure and intimidate four people, as well as damage and destroy a building, a vehicle, real estate and personal property of those four people.
The U.S. Attorney’s Office asked for Brydon to be forced to forfeit four drones. He used the drones between June 2022 and April 2024, according to the indictment.
Several devices were dropped by drone, while others were placed by hand or thrown, state police said at the time. Brydon is charged in Aroostook County court with five counts of arson, one count of attempted arson, six counts of criminal use of explosives, two counts of stalking and one count of endangering the welfare of a child.
That case is scheduled for a jury trial in December.