Sheriff: Man aimed AR-15-mounted laser at police helicopter

Port St. Lucie, Florida - Authorities arrested a 55-year-old man in Port St. Lucie, Florida, for pointing a laser attached to an AR-15 semi-automatic rifle at a Martin County Sheriff's Office helicopter on Jan. 18, the MCSO said.

The incident was captured by a camera on the helicopter, which at the time was assisting Port St. Lucie Police on an unrelated burglary.

The sheriff's office said Norman Flaxman walked out of his home on Southwest Belmont Circle, looked up, and then pointed the weapon directly at the helicopter, "deploying the laser two to three times."

The MCSO said Flaxman told police he did it because he wanted to test his laser. He was charged with the felony offense of pointing a laser at a pilot or driver, the sheriff's office said.