A man has been charged with pointing a laser beam at Marine One while President Trump was on board on Saturday, according to a signed affidavit.
The affidavit, signed by Secret Service Officer Diego Santiago, alleges that Jacob Samuel Winkler pointed a red laser beam at Santiago, before pointing it in the direction of Marine One.
Winkler is charged with aiming a laser pointer at an aircraft, a felony punishable by up to five years in prison. The affidavit was also signed by Magistrate Judge for the D.C. District Court Zia Faruqui.
Santiago said he observed Winkler “shirtless, talking to himself and being loud” on the sidewalk of Constitution Avenue. After the officer shined a flashlight at the man, the defendant disoriented Santiago using his laser beam, after which he shined it in the direction of the president’s helicopter.
Trump was en route from the South Lawn of the White House to a private dinner in Mount Vernon, Va., on Saturday evening. Marine One lifted off at just after 6 p.m. EDT.
Winkler’s actions “posed a risk of flash blindness and pilot disorientation, especially during low-level flight near other helicopters (U.S. Park Police, U.S. Marine Corps) and the Washington Monument,” the affidavit reads. “This placed Marine One at risk of an airborne collision.”
Santiago then took the man into custody, after which he apologized to Trump. During an interview, the man admitted to pointing the laser beam at Marine One, and said he points it “at all kinds of thing, including stop signs.” Investigators also recovered a 3-inch fixed-blade knife from Winkler.
The Hill has reached out to the White House and Secret Service for comment on the incident, and is working to determine whether Winkler has legal representation.
Source: The Hill - News
