Florida Friday: Man Tries to Steal a Plane to Fly His Weed Across the Country
Everyone knows when you absolutely have to get a pound of marijuana from Florida to California, the best chance you have to get away with it is to fly it on a stolen airplane. At least that was Robert Stienstra's plan, anyway.
Miami Herald — Stienstra was arrested Saturday on several charges, including grand theft, felony marijuana possession and fleeing the scene of a crash after police found him in the pilot’s seat of a 2008 Socata TBM 700 aircraft.
His first question?
“The male looked at me and asked me if I knew how to fly the airplane,” the arresting officer wrote, according to the charging affidavit.
Florida Friday always makes me feel better about myself. Whatever mistakes I make or things that go wrong in my life, at least I'm not asking cops if they know how to fly a plane I'm trying to facilitate my drug trafficking.
And how did police know this guy was going to try to steal a plane, you may ask. Well it turns out he drove to the flight academy in a truck he stole from his former employer.
Daytona Beach police first began looking for Stienstra late Friday night when they received reports of a stolen truck. The 22-year-old was suspected of taking the vehicle because it belonged to company he used to work for, police say. In fact, when the owner called Stienstra, police say he confessed.
“’I am driving your and I’ll pay you back,’” Stienstra said, according to the affidavit.
The search for the vehicle eventually reached New Smyrna Beach police, who followed the trail to Epic Flight Academy. There, Stienstra had been spotted on the wing of the plane asking a flight instructor “How he can fly the plane,” police say.
When police searched Stienstra after he told them he had recently bought the plane he admitted not knowing how to fly, they found meth and about a pound and a half of marijuana. I guess his plan wasn't that great, after all.
Some people deserve to be in jail for sheer stupidity.