| Photo: Florida Fish and Wildlife Commission |
| Two men are accused of flying this small ultralight aircraft to an island to tend two marijuana plants. |
Two Brevard County, Florida men are in jail on marijuana cultivation charges after they made an ultralight flight, allegedly to tend their cannabis plants on a deserted island inside a conservation area, according to the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission.
An agency inspector working on the nearby Seminole Ranch Conservation Area about 9 a.m. on Friday said he saw an ultralight plane land near a palm island in the St. Johns River in Volusia County, agency spokeswoman Joy Hill said, reports Jeff Weiner of the Orlando Sentinel.
The inspector followed two men who left the ultralight craft and walked into the a remote part of the island. Wildlife officers later discovered two marijuana plants they claim the men were tending on the island, according to Hill.
Both men were arrested and booked into Volusia County Jail later Friday.
The plane’s owner, Ronald Thorstad, 53, was charged with cultivation of marijuana and possession of a firearm while in commission of a felony, both third-degree felonies, and use of drug paraphernalia, a misdemeanor.
Passenger James Nordby, 67, was charged with cultivation of cannabis and use of paraphernalia.