BREVARD COUNTY, Fla. — A Palm Bay man has been charged with felony and jailed after his deputy claimed he aimed a laser at a sheriff’s office helicopter, temporarily blinding the pilot’s eyes.
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Their helicopters were up and running on Sunday night, assisting the Palm Bay Police Department in the search for the shooting suspect, according to the sheriff’s office.
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That’s when 33-year-old Dean Beolet decided to shoot the helicopter multiple times, agents say.
The sheriff’s office said the laser refracted through one of the pilot’s night vision goggles, blurring his vision and having to hand over control of the helicopter to a tactical flight officer, who also happened to be the pilot.
In addition to endangering the crew, deputies say the lasers endangered Palm Bay officers because they jammed equipment they were using to track down a possibly armed shooter suspect.
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A Brevard County Sheriff’s Department crew led Palm Bay police officers to the source of the laser, where they discovered Beolet.
He was arrested and charged with the felony of pointing a laser beam at a driver or pilot.
Beolet is being held at the Brevard County Jail on $5,000 bail.
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The pilot was checked out by an optometrist on Monday and then cleared to fly again.
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