Man pleads guilty to pointing laser at LAPD helicopter during downtown protests against immigration raids
A 21-year-old transient from Riverside County pleaded guilty Thursday to aiming a laser pointer at a Los Angeles Police Department helicopter that was monitoring immigration raid protests in downtown Los Angeles.
Dominic Rios, whose last known address was in Hemet, was arrested July 7 after investigators filed a complaint.
Sentencing was scheduled in Los Angeles federal court on Dec. 4, at which time Rios will face up to five years in federal prison, prosecutors said.
According to the complaint, Rios aimed the laser device at an LAPD helicopter flying at 950 feet while its crew monitored anti-immigration enforcement protests.
The airship was struck three times by a green laser beam, according to the complaint.
"The LAPD helicopter pilot and flight officer were able to identify the person using the laser ... and relay his description and location near a parking lot to LAPD officers on the ground, who located Rios and arrested him," according to an FBI news release. "An LAPD officer searched Rios and found a laser pointer in his pocket."
Rios admitted that he pointed the laser at the chopper, according to the FBI, which noted that the beam lit up the helicopter's cockpit for three to five seconds each time and forced the pilot to change altitude.
The seized pointer was found to emit green light that is a danger to people's eyes.
