PINELLAS COUNTY, Fla. — A teen was arrested in Pinellas County after pointing a laser light at a sheriff's office helicopter.
According to deputies, the Pinellas County Sheriff's Office helicopter was in the air near the area of 7th Street Northwest and 11th Ave in Largo when the green laser light shined on it.
Flight deputies kept a visual on the suspect and directed deputies on the ground to that location. That's when they found a 13-year-old boy who was in possession of a flare gun with a mounted laser.
The boy admitted to pointing the light at the helicopter "because he was bored." He was arrested and charged with felony misuse of a laser lighting device and taken to the Pinellas County Juvenile Assessment Center.
In the state of Florida, it is a third-degree felony for any person who knowingly and willfully shines, points, or focuses the beam of a laser light toward an individual operating a motor vehicle, vessel, or aircraft.
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