Man charged with shooting lasers at WSP aircraft

TACOMA — A 61-year-old man has been charged with shooting green lasers on two separate occasions at a Washington State Patrol aircraft in Tacoma.

Pierce County prosecutors charged the man with two counts of first-degree unlawful discharge of a laser on Monday. He was released from Pierce County Jail on personal recognizance.

A State Patrol pilot advised troopers that someone from a Tacoma residence was shooting green lasers at his aircraft on Saturday at 7:55 p.m. The aircraft was on duty assisting troopers with tracking aggressive drivers. The pilot advised that this was the second time that week that someone in that specific residence shot lasers at his aircraft, according to charging documents.

The pilot said that the suspect left his residence and was actively shooting lasers from an empty lot outside his house. When a trooper went to the residence, he saw the suspect holding a green laser device. That suspect was later identified as the 61-year-old man, prosecutors wrote.

The man quickly walked away when he saw the trooper trying to contact him. When the trooper called out for him, the man froze temporarily and walked toward him. The trooper said he informed the man he contacted him because he was shooting his laser at the aircraft. The man said he has “antennas,” and the aircraft caused him a lot of pain when it flew over his house, prosecutors wrote.

The man said he shoots lasers at the aircraft to make it go away. The man was arrested, and the trooper was unable to locate the laser.