FBI Investigating Mysterious Nightly New Jersey Drone ‘Cluster’

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Residents of Morris County, New Jersey, are a little uneasy these days.

Formations of large drones have been spotted flying over the area every night for at least the last two weeks, according to local media reports.

Mike Walsh, a resident of New Jersey’s Randolph township, told Pix11 he’s seen hundreds of the drones in recent weeks. He said they’re aloft “for hours” at a time and don’t seem to follow any discernible flight path.

“They come towards you. Then they change direction a little. They’re all going different ways,” he told the outlet. “Some are very big, probably the size of a car.”

Morris County Sheriff James M. Gannon said Monday the office is actively investigating the drone activity and asked photographers to send in “higher resolution captures of the questionable flights.”

Morris County resident Julie Shavalier told NBC News she’s having trouble sleeping because of the drone activity and is “completely unnerved.”

“When I would get up and look out my window at 2 a.m., 4 a.m., they were still hovering,” she told the station.

“I got up at 5:30 a.m. this morning and they were still there as the sun was starting to rise. They went back in the same direction they came from, and I expect they’ll be back as soon as the sun goes down tonight.”

At this time, he said, the public isn’t in any “immediate danger” from the flights. Should one of the drones crash or land, residents have been asked not to approach it but to instead call authorities.

The drones are flying in the same general area as Picatinny Arsenal, a U.S. Army installation that conducts weapons systems research and development. President-elect Donald Trump also has a golf course in the area.

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In addition to the Morris County Sheriff, the FBI, the New Jersey State Police and the New Jersey Office of Homeland Security and Preparedness are collecting information on the flights.

The FBI acknowledged in a release Tuesday that the agency has received reports of a “cluster of what look to be drones and a possible fixed wing aircraft” over the past several weeks.

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