A Virginia man was arrested last week after authorities say they discovered him shining a laser pointer at a police helicopter that was pursuing a suspect.
On the evening of March 10, a Fairfax County Police helicopter was tracking a fleeing suspect wanted by the Virginia State Police when one of the crew noticed a laser coming from a nearby apartment complex.
After investigating the source of the laser, detectives were able to track down the suspect at the 9200 block of Ashland Woods Lane.The suspect, who has not been identified, was arrested on suspicion of interference with the operation of an aircraft, which is a class 1 misdemeanor. “Pointing a laser at an aircraft is illegal and also a very bad idea when that aircraft is a police helicopter,” Fairfax County Police wrote on Facebook.
Pointing high-powered lasers into aircraft, which is a federal crime, can incapacitate pilots and thus risk the lives of everyone aboard the plane and potentially others on the ground.
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