Cathedral City Man Faces New Charges For Laser Pointing
RIVERSIDE – A Cathedral City man arrested last year for pointing a laser at a California Highway Patrol helicopter now faces federal charges.
Nineteen-year-old Nathan Ramon Wells was arrested, this morning, on two felony counts: interference with an operator of an aircraft and attempted interference.
Each charge carries a maximum penalty of 20 years in a federal prison.
The charges stem from June 3, 2009, when CHP officers traveling in their helicopter were helping investigators track down a suspect in a residential burglary. They say their cockpit lit with a green light, which caused them to look away from the crime scene.
They tracked the source of the light, which was a car. Police on the ground stopped the vehicle, and found the laser inside.
