SARASOTA, Fla. — A 42-year-old Florida man was jailed Wednesday after police said he was pointing a green laser light at pilots trying to land Wednesday at Sarasota Bradenton Airport.
Charlie Chapman, 42, is charged with aggravated assault on an officer, resisting arrest and multiple counts of pointing a laser at pilots, according to a news release from the Manatee County Sheriff's Office.
Investigators learned that the laser was pointed on a fixed wing plane four times. A pilot told police the laser hit him directly in the eyes temporarily blinding him, the news release states. The pilot later reported that his vision remains blurry, police said.
When deputies went up in their helicopter to find the suspect, the laser was then pointed at them. Deputies on the ground located Chapman and Tased him after they said he tried to hit them with a hammer while trying to arrest him.
