Feds: Pilot used illicit drugs before deadly crash

BOONVILLE, Mo. Federal officials say a small plane pilot who crashed last year in central Missouri, killing himself and a passenger, was under the influence of illicit drugs and was nearly blind in one eye.

The National Transportation Safety Board says 67-year-old Charles McCutcheon, of Fayette, tested positive for cocaine, methamphetamine, the sedative clonazepam and the antihistamine ingredient diphenhydramine. He was making the final descent into Jesse Viertel Memorial Airport near Boonville in April 2017 when he his Bellanca 17-31ATC aircraft hit high tension power lines. The crash also killed his 49-year-old passenger, Bryan Roth, of Franklin.

The report released last month found that McCutcheon had scarring from a previous brain injury and severe damage to his left optic nerve. The report ruled out mechanical problems or bad weather.