Florida Man Carrying 500 Grams of Marijuana Steals Plane to Meet Girlfriend in California

A man from New Smyrna Beach is behind bars after attempting the ultimate romance story.

Saturday, officers were called to the New Smyrna Beach Municipal Airport on a report of a stolen vehicle being found.

Shortly after police arrived, a man showed up and told police the stolen vehicle was his. He told them a stranger jumped in the back of his truck and offered $1,000 for a ride. The stranger then got out and left behind a grinder, scale, and a cellphone.

Around the same time the victim was flagging down police, another call came in from a flight instructor that a man with a blue bag was spotted crouched on the wing of a plane sitting on the part of the tarmac not accessible to the public.

According to the report, the suspect asked the flight instructor how to fly a plane.

When police arrived, the man identified as Robert Stienstra, was sitting in the right seat of the plane. Robert then asked the police if any of them knew how to fly a plane, before jumping out an emergency window and getting apprehended.

Police said in the blue duffel bag Stienstra was carrying, they found a few things:

Wallet and ID
Sunglasses
Headphones
Cigarillos
Two lighters
Pocket knife
Laptop
Glass pipe that tested positive for methamphetamines

Next to the bag was a container holding 500 grams of marijuana.

The report explained why Robert was on the plane.

“The defendant stated that he purchased the aircraft for $20,000 cash recently and he was going to fly to California to meet his girlfriend. He advised he did not have paperwork and did not know the person he bought it from. The defendant stated he was let onto the airfield by security. It should be known that there is no security on duty at the airport.”

Robert was charged with: