Foreigner accused of flying a drone into DP Ruto’s home charged, freed on bail

A Polish national Piotr Lukasz Litwinuik at a Milimani Court on Thursday, April 1,2021 [Collins Kweyu, Standard]

A foreigner accused of flying a drone into Deputy President William Ruto's residence has denied charges pressed against him by the State.

Piotr Lukasz Litwiniuk (pictured) was charged with importing an unmanned aircraft system without a permit and authorisation from the Kenya Civil Aviation Authority (KCAA).

At the same time, he denied a separate charge of flying an unmanned aircraft system without a permit.

Litwiniuk appeared before Milimani Court Chief Magistrate Martha Mutuku yesterday and was released on a Sh200, 000 cash bail.

He will be the first person to battle the State on charges relating to flying drones.

It is legal to fly a drone in Kenya. One has to be a Kenyan citizen or resident, be over 18 years, or a corporate body in the country. Government agencies and counties are also allowed to own and fly drones.

However, The Civil Aviation (Unmanned Aircraft Systems) Regulations, 2020 require an operator to seek authorisation from KCAA and get a licence to fly it around.

It is an offence, however, to fly a drone with military specifications without KCAA authorisation.