The September 11 hijackers used box cutters.
Now someone just used a forged piece of paper to walk off with 15 industrial drones capable of spraying 40 gallons of liquid chemicals apiece.
And the FBI is telling people privately this is one of the most sophisticated thefts they've seen in years – which means whoever pulled this off wasn't improvising.
How a Fake Document Walked $870,000 Worth of Potential Weapons Out the Door
The drones disappeared from CAC International in Harrison, New Jersey on March 24.
A delivery driver showed up with a fraudulent bill of lading – the shipping document that authorizes release of cargo.
CAC International looked at the paperwork and handed over 15 Ceres Air C31 agricultural drones without question.
At roughly $58,000 per unit, that's $870,000 in hardware designed to hold and spray up to 40 gallons of liquid chemicals – handed to unknown parties because someone printed a convincing fake document.
The New Jersey State Police Cargo Theft Unit recovered all 15 drones on April 27 at Prudent Corporation in Dover, New Jersey, with Homeland Security Investigations and Customs and Border Protection assisting in what remains an active investigation.
Trump's law enforcement got every single drone back in five weeks.
The FBI Is "Freaked Out" – Here's Exactly Why
The Ceres Air C31 is not a hobbyist drone with a GoPro attached.
It's a precision agricultural sprayer built to cover large areas with liquid at speed and scale.
Former FBI agent Steve Lazarus didn't mince words.
"Even common chemicals, used improperly, can be a public safety danger,” he said. “Throw in the Internet recipes for biological and chemical weapons that anyone with a Tor browser has access to, and this is a potential nightmare scenario. These aren't hobby drones with cameras. They're industrial sprayers designed to carry and disperse significant amounts of liquid quickly and with precision."
https://twitter.com/MarioNawfal/status/2047749665425080793?s=20
The U.S. Army put this threat on paper in a 2020 report warning that commercially available agricultural drones could serve as delivery systems for chemical or biological attacks – and that a drone-based chemical or biological warfare platform is "a definite possibility, especially for developing nations."
The Army saw this coming six years ago.
An individual briefed on the FBI's response told The High Side that agents consider this "one of the most highly sophisticated thefts agents have seen in a long time."
Lazarus put it plainly: "The bureau is freaked out for a good reason."
Sophisticated means planned.
Sophisticated means rehearsed.
Sophisticated means someone spent time learning exactly how American logistics companies process cargo releases – and found the hole.
Somebody Needs to Answer for This
The New Jersey State Police deserve credit for recovering every drone.
DHS deserves credit for getting Homeland Security Investigations on the case immediately.
Now someone needs to explain how a fraudulent bill of lading fooled a professional logistics company into releasing $870,000 worth of chemical dispersal equipment to a stranger with paperwork.
Because the people who planned this already know the answer.
They know which companies check documents carefully and which ones don't.
https://twitter.com/RedWavePress/status/2048760177462034815?s=20
They know how American freight moves, which warehouses have cameras, and which shipping protocols have gaps big enough to drive a delivery truck through.
The 2024 New Jersey drone sightings triggered congressional hearings, government task forces, and months of official reassurances that most of what people saw were hobbyists and misidentified aircraft.
Sixteen months later, someone stole a fleet of chemical-spraying industrial drones from the same state using forged documents precise enough to fool professionals on site.
The drones are back.
The people who wanted them are still out there.
And they now know exactly what American supply chain security does – and doesn't – protect.
Sources:
- Adam Sabes, "Nearly $870K in chemical spraying drones stolen from NJ company in 'nightmare scenario' heist: report," Fox News, April 27, 2026.
- "FBI Spooked by Sophisticated Theft," The High Side, April 2026.
- New Jersey State Police, official statement to Fox News Digital, April 27, 2026.
- U.S. Army, "The Chemical and Biological Attack Threat of Commercial Unmanned Aircraft Systems," AUSA, 2020.