{
  "id": 7428608,
  "title": "Teen drone operator charged over mistaken ID shooting",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/12/teen-drone-operator-charged-over-mistaken-id-shooting",
  "topic": null,
  "section": null,
  "published": "2026-09-12T00:15:00.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "Discovered",
    "slug": "discovered",
    "url": "https://armidaleexpress.com.au/story/9348818/teen-drone-operator-charged-over-mistaken-id-shooting"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "An 18-year-old teenager was arrested in West Hoxton on Friday morning after reports of suspicious drone activity. Joshua Macdonald, 40, was shot dead at a home in Merrylands West on September 2, according to Detective Superintendent Joe Doueihi. The teenager is accused of having surveilled the victim with a drone before his death. Macdonald was contracted to carry out parts of the hit, which may have included driving a car or destroying evidence. The 19-year-old man found in the car with the drone operator was also arrested and charged. The NRL club was informed of the court appearance of one of its academy players and has reported the matter to NRL Integrity.",
  "summary": null,
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}