Aerial Stalker Banned from Flying
According to an 10/6/2023 NBC News report, NH Pilot Accused of Stalking Flew Over Woman’s Home, Threw Tomatoes from Air, a pilot who has engaged in aerial stalking was arraigned on 10/4/2023 in Vermont.
The opening paragraphs of the story appear below.
A New Hampshire man pleaded not guilty Thursday to charges of stalking a woman by flying his small plane over her home.
Michael Arnold, 65, was arraigned in southern Vermont, where he kept his plane, on charges of aggravated stalking, violating an abuse prevention order, resisting arrest, impeding a public officer and providing false information to police. He was released on several conditions, including that he have no contact with the woman, not stalk her, and stay 300 feet (91 meters) from her home and business, as well as from all airplanes.
A stalking order was in place banning him from flying, according to an FBI agent, who said Arnold had been stalking the Schuylerville, New York, woman for approximately four years. New York authorities say Arnold was spotted flying low over the village of Schuylerville and at one point was observed throwing tomatoes from the plane, according to the investigating officer in Bennington, Vermont.
The woman told police that she feared for her safety for a long time and worried that Arnold was going to fly his plane into her home, court papers state. She told local media that Arnold was a customer in the cafe she owns.
To access the article in full click here.
Stalking Victim Interviewed by Dan Abrams on News Nation
In this six minute 10/10/2023 YouTube video, Pilot Accused of Stalking Woman by Flying Cessna Over her House…for Years!, Dan Abrams of News Nation interviews the victim. Abrams explains at the outset that Arnold was arrested five times over the past four years for his stalking behaviors but the restraining and protective orders did not apply to the airspace. Eventually a no-fly order was issued which led to Arnold’s arrest on 10/6/2023. At that time he was charged with 8 misdemeanor counts of criminal contempt and one felony count of criminal contempt. As stated by Wilusz,
"The FAA has done nothing to be able to provide any form of support. I have reached out. I can’t even tell you how many times I reached out to the FAA with investigators involved. Every time they would respond to me in email or verbally saying there was nothing to support his stalking." (3:06 mark)
According to the lead-in to the video:
Cassie Wilusz has been facing a peculiar and infuriating form of harassment for almost four years — from the airspace above her residence. Her family is repeatedly awakened by a single-engine Cessna, operated by a 64-year-old local resident, flying so close to their rooftops that it causes windows and doors to shake. This unsettling occurrence happens at least three times a week, precisely at 7 a.m. Additionally, there was one instance when the pilot purportedly showered her home and yard with tomatoes.
Sadly, many residents across the country who are subjected to daily harassment, bullying and stalking behaviors by student and private pilots receive a similar response. The FAA and the aviation industry are far more invested in normalizing, promoting, and encouraging the stalking and bullying behaviors exhibited by pilots while simultaneously dismissing and ignoring the reports of impacted residents. It is not unusual for pilots to circle repeatedly over homes, neighborhoods, schools, playgrounds, and recreational areas multiple times daily. To justify their unresponsive "do nothing approach", the FAA, airport owners, Port authorities, elected officials and pilots often refer to these behaviors as "business as usual."
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