Man pretends to be general, attempts to attend classified briefing

A North Carolina man pretended to be an Army general, attempted to get into a classified briefing and flew a helicopter to the headquarters of a major tech company, federal officials announced.

Christian Gerald Desgroux, 57, was indicted by a grand jury on charges of pretending to be a U.S. Army lieutenant general, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of North Carolina said in a news release.

Desgroux allegedly claimed to be headed to a classified briefing, and "asserted authority" to land a helicopter at the headquarters of Statistical Analysis Systems, in Cary, N.C.  The company develops analytics software and employs nearly 6,000 workers at its large campus.

The case is being investigated by the Department of Homeland Security and the Defense Criminal Investigative Service.  If convicted, Desgroux would face maximum penalties of 3 years imprisonment and a $250,000 fine.