A man from Warrenton, Missouri, was sentenced to 21 months in prison after being convicted of aiming a laser pointer at a Metro Air Support helicopter in St. Louis last year. U.S. District Judge Henry E. Autrey delivered the sentence on Wednesday.
According to evidence presented during the July trial, Joshua J. Johnson used a blue Class IV laser shortly before 9:45 p.m. on August 9, 2024, to target a marked police helicopter flying over the Benton Park neighborhood. The helicopter was supporting other officers at the time of the incident. Both a St. Louis County Police Department pilot and a St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department pilot were temporarily blinded when the cockpit was illuminated by the laser.
Officers tracked the source of the laser to a vehicle and continued monitoring as it moved down the street. The driver aimed the laser at the helicopter again before officers on the ground stopped and arrested Johnson, who was alone in the vehicle. Although Johnson initially denied involvement, he later admitted responsibility both to officers and during phone calls from jail.
A jury convicted Johnson, now 44 years old, of one felony count of knowingly aiming a laser pointer at an aircraft.
“This is dangerous conduct,” Assistant U.S. Attorney Mohsen Pasha said at Wednesday’s sentencing hearing. He noted that strong consumer model lasers can permanently blind air crews and highlighted that anyone pointing a laser at an aircraft may face civil penalties up to $11,000 imposed by the Federal Aviation Administration.
"Pointing a laser at an aircraft can have catastrophic consequences, including the potential for fatal accidents if pilots are temporarily blinded. This is not a harmless prank," said Special Agent in Charge Chris Crocker of the FBI St. Louis Division. "The act is not difficult to trace, and in this case, it took mere minutes for the jury to convict Joshua J. Johnson."
The FBI led an investigation into this case alongside assistance from both local police departments and Metro Air Support Unit personnel. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Mohsen Pasha and Derek Wiseman prosecuted Johnson’s case.
