A man who aimed a laser pointer at Marine One, the presidential helicopter, as it was departing the White House on Saturday with President Trump aboard was charged with a felony on Monday, the authorities said.
The man, Jacob Samuel Winkler, 33, of Washington, D.C., was standing on the sidewalk on Constitution Avenue when a uniformed Secret Service officer saw him shine a red laser beam at the president’s helicopter, a criminal complaint said.
The helicopter was at a low altitude and was flying toward the Washington Monument during its initial ascent from the South grounds of the White House on a path that took it over the park known as the Ellipse, the authorities said.
Investigators said that Mr. Winkler’s actions “posed a risk of flash blindness and pilot disorientation,” especially “during low-level flight near other helicopters.”
“This placed Marine One at risk of an airborne collision,” the criminal complaint said.
Mr. Winkler was charged with pointing a laser at an aircraft, a federal felony that carries a maximum sentence of five years in prison. In addition to a criminal fine of up to $250,000 for a conviction, offenders can be fined up to $32,000 by the Federal Aviation Administration.
A federal public defender representing Mr. Winkler did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Monday.
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The post Man Who Shined a Laser at Marine One With Trump Aboard Is Arrested, U.S. Says appeared first on New York Times.
