Faces felony charges in connection to the incident
A 41-year-old Ossining man has been charged with shining a green laser at a Westchester County Police helicopter on Friday night as it traveled along the Hudson River shoreline in Ossining.
At 9:56 p.m., the Aviation Unit crew reported that someone had aimed a laser into the cockpit, temporarily blinding the pilot and a tactical flight officer on board. The pilot was able to maintain control of the aircraft and change course to avoid being blinded by the laser. The Aviation crew radioed that the suspect involved was on a man on a bicycle in Snowden Park.
Ossining Police Department officers responded and took Anthony Lopez, 41, of Main Street into custody and confiscated a green laser. He was turned over to County Police.
Lopez was transported to County Police headquarters in Hawthorne and booked on charges of Directing a Laser at an Aircraft 1st Degree and Assault 2nd Degree, felonies. He was held overnight for arraignment in Ossining Town Court.
Public Safety Commissioner Terrance Raynor said, “Shining a laser at a police helicopter, or at any aircraft, is a serious crime that endangers the pilot, other persons on board and the public in the event a crash results. I applaud our Aviation Unit crew for their skill in maintaining control of the aircraft despite being temporarily blinded and experiencing eye pain from the laser assault. I am grateful to the Ossining Police Department for its immediate response and for taking this suspect into custody.”
Lopez was arraigned Saturday in Ossining Town Court and remanded to the Westchester County Jail in Valhalla.
A criminal complaint is merely an accusation, and a defendant should be presumed innocent until found guilty in court.