NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WTVF) — Metro Police pilots were busy Wednesday evening tracking two men accused of shining lasers at their helicopter in separate cases.
Metro Police pilots in Air One reported that Hector Otoniel, 19, shined a laser light into the cockpit causing temporary blindness.
Using in-flight technology, they tracked the suspect to the Berkley Drive area of Madison, and officers converged and went to the scene.
Further into their flight, they saw another green laser pointed at them. This one was from a different neighborhood more than five miles away. Officers on the ground said they spotted Jamale Strong Jr., 25, with a laser and took him into custody.
When Metro officers on the ground made contact telling the suspect it was illegal to do that, he allegedly said ‘Oh, I didn’t know,” according to an arrest affidavit.
Sky5 Pilot Jason Morgan said pointing lasers at helicopters is dangerous.
"It doesn’t only damage the short-term vision of a pilot. It can end a pilot’s career in a matter of seconds because it can do that kind of damage to the eyeball,” Morgan said, "When you look at a light for too long and you look away, and you see the light, that’s the effect of the eyeball from looking at that light. It has to adjust back to night vision."
As for the two suspects, they face three counts of felony aggravated assault.
"For military and law enforcement pilots, they’re at a greater risk because they’re targeted," Morgan said.
Last year, pilots across the country reported more than 9,500 laser strikes to the FAA. People who shine lasers face fines of up to $11,000 per violation, and in some cases, the federal fines go up for repeat offenders.
"Being low to the ground and having your vision impaired is definitely not a good thing," Morgan said.
