A Eustis man has been sentenced to 15 months in federal prison after shooting a law enforcement drone conducting surveillance on him last year, according to the U.S. Department of Justice.

In a release, DOJ officials said that the incident happened in March 2025, when the man — identified as Justin Tyler Kress, 34 — shot and damaged a drone belonging to the Lake County Sheriff’s Office.

“Deputies had been using the drone to conduct physical surveillance of Kress on his rural, multi-acre property as they attempted to arreset him on a warrant for felony criminal mischief,” the release reads. “Kress had told his neighbors earlier that he would shoot at law enforcement officers if they tried to arrest him for damaging nearby fences.”

Kress was later taken into custody, and deputies discovered 20-gauge shotgun shells in the area where Kress had been shooting at the drone, investigators noted. The shotgun, a rifle, and a pistol were found in the home.

Kress pleaded guilty back in May to the attempted destruction of a law enforcement drone, and the sentence was ultimately handed down on Friday.

In addition, the court ordered Kress to pay $8,200 in restitution, the release states.