Regulations and Government
Florida Pilot, Mechanic Face Federal Fraud Charges
The pair are accused of faking the demise of an aircraft and later trying to sell it.

A Florida pilot and an aircraft maintenance technician were arraigned in U.S. District Court last month by the Department of Transportation’s Office of the Inspector General on charges of conspiracy to commit aircraft parts fraud. According to the allegations, in June 2012, the mechanic, James Michael Schiller, completed an inspection on a twin-engine aircraft and found it to be non-airworthy. He subsequently removed the serviceable components from the aircraft, which was reported to the FAA as totally “destroyed or scrapped” and was therefore deregistered.