Isaac Kendall Wright

St. IGNACE, Mich. — Investigators from the Michigan State Police St. Ignace Post report that Isaac Kendall Wright, a 25-year-old man from Cincinnati, Ohio, was arraigned Thursday in the 89th District Court of Cheboygan County on a charge of Felony Trespass Upon a Key Transportation Facility (MCL 750.552c) for trespassing on the Mackinac Bridge last November.

The investigation into the incident, which occurred on Nov. 5, 2020, began when photographs taken from the top of the south tower of the Mackinac Bridge surfaced on social media platforms. Upon learning of the photos, Mackinac Bridge Authority personnel reviewed an incident in which an alarm was activated on the bridge early one morning in November, and a check of the surveillance video revealed evidence of the crime.

MSP investigators soon discovered that multiple other law enforcement agencies from around the country were investigating similar crimes believed to be committed by the same individual. Detectives from multiple states began to work together, and eventually were able to effect Wright’s arrest in Winona, Arizona. He was extradited to Cincinnati, Ohio to face his first set of criminal charges, before being arraigned virtually on the Michigan charge.

Under the Michigan penal code, Wright faces up to four years in prison, a fine of up to $2,500, or both if convicted of the felony charge related to climbing the Mackinac Bridge.

Wright, who has been identified as a photographer going by the name “Driftershoots” or “Drift” on multiple social networking platforms, maintains a website where he sells photos taken from the tops of buildings and bridges. According to that site, he as climbed 13 bridges around the country and scaled more than 200 buildings.

In Ohio, Wright is accused of breaking into the Great American Tower in Cincinnati to take photos.

Wright currently remains lodged in the Hamilton County Jail in Ohio. His preliminary exam on the Michigan charge is scheduled for March 5 through the 89th District Court of Cheboygan County.