That’s not algae. Drone dropping dye turns pools green, New Jersey police say

A New Jersey business owner faces charges that he used a drone to drop green dye in swimming pools, police reported.

In August, a homeowner reported spotting a drone hovering over his backyard swimming pool, Absecon police said in a news release.

The drone dropped something in the pool, turning it an “alarming shade of green,” police said.

Police soon heard similar reports, including one involving a Quality Inn pool in nearby Galloway Township that was damaged by the dye, officials said.

Working with the Federal Aviation Administration, police detected the drone on Sept. 1 in flight over the Quality Inn, officials said. They tracked the drone back to a business in Galloway Township.

Police arrested the 45-year-old business owner on criminal mischief charges in the incident, officials said.

He had been using the drone to drop sea dye markers, used in maritime rescues, into the pools, police said.

They ask anyone who thinks they may have been a target to call Absecon detective Neal Galletta at 609-641-0667 ext. 216, or Galloway Township detective Jason Kiamos at 609-652-3705 ext. 331.

Absecon is about 70 miles southeast of Trenton.