Police drone busts an alleged drug deal in China after tailing a suspect and filming the exchange

Illegal drug deals are typically surreptitious operations, but Chinese police said they managed to catch one in action using a drone.

In a video shared with state broadcaster CCTV, authorities in the southern city of Guilin were shown trying to tail a suspected drug dealer. But instead of sending officers on the road, they deployed an unmanned aerial vehicle.

The operation led them to an abandoned brick factory, where a customer was already waiting in a car. The suspects were seen to be exchanging what police said were drugs and money, seemingly unaware of the drone recording above them. The entire process was live-streamed to officers on the ground, who eventually arrested four people.

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Reactions on social media were largely supportive of the police operation, with many praising the use of “advanced technology”.

“Technology empowers the fight against crime,” one Weibo user commented.

Others wondered if police surveillance in China might soon reach new heights.

“Will BeiDou be used to collect evidence a few years from now?” another Weibo user wondered, referencing China’s satellite system that is designed to be a GPS alternative.

The Guilin case is hardly the first example of police using drones on the job. Nimbler drones are now providing authorities with a more efficient way to spot potential crimes and conduct searches from a safe distance. In some areas, policing is starting to look very different from before.

In the southern province of Fujian, police use drones to monitor traffic infractions. Using loudspeakers attached to the flying vehicles, police shout instructions at offenders on the road: “Put on your helmet, please!” Traffic-monitoring drones can also be found in Shanghai and Wuhan, among other places.

The use of drones for public shaming became especially popular during the Covid-19 pandemic. Across cities and villages, citizens who dismissed social distancing rules to attend mahjong gatherings or refused to wear a mask outside faced loud, public warnings from drones.

But perhaps none of these cases were as dramatic as one that happened last year in the hilly southwest province of Yunnan. A 63-year-old convicted human trafficker was finally captured in a mountain cave after being on the run for 17 years. Police said they had been searching the area with a drone for nearly five hours before they discovered a piece of blue tile in the middle of a cliff, indicating that someone was living there.

Law enforcement authorities around the world have hailed the benefits of using drones, especially in dangerous situations or inaccessible locations. But privacy rights advocates have also cautioned against the excessive use of drones in policing. Critics say that the government should establish appropriate controls to determine when drone policing should be allowed and how drone footage is stored.