A Mississippi man faces five years in prison and a $250,000 fine for shooting a laser pointer at airplanes.
Eugene Conrad, 52, of Michigan City, Mississippi, pleaded guilty to the charges in federal court this week. He faces up to five years in federal prison to be followed by three years supervised release and a $250,000 fine. Sentencing is set for March.
On July 15th, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) notified the FBI Memphis Field Office of reports of planes flying into Memphis International Airport (Memphis) from the east were consistently being struck in the cockpit and cabin by a green laser.
The laser beams seemed to be coming from the Hardeman County, Tennessee and Benton County, Mississippi areas. From January 1, 2021 to July 15, 2021 there were 49 strikes by a green laser on aircraft, mainly FedEx planes.
On July 16th, agents looked for the source of the lights in Salsbury, Tennessee. While they were there, MEM’s air traffic control relayed reports that planes were being struck by a laser. FBI agents saw the light long enough to get its general vicinity but the laser stopped before they could find the source.
In August, agents looked around Salsbury again. This time they had a plane from the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation (TBI) with a camera attached. At around 9:30 pm, the TBI aircraft entered the area over Hardeman County, Tennessee and almost immediately began reporting laser strikes originating from the south and southwest.
The TBI plane circled the area several times. Surveillance equipment pinpointed an individual standing in front of a house at the intersection of Whippoorwill Road and Hamer Road in Benton County, Mississippi near the Tennessee/Mississippi border.
When agents arrived on the scene, they saw a male, later identified as Conrad, walking around a house while lasering the plane. A green laser pointer was found in an outdoor trashcan. Conrad admitted to law enforcement to intentionally striking planes flying near his residence with the green laser for several months.