WASCO — A 21-year-old Wasco man is behind bars after pointing a laser at a police helicopter.
Austin Dennis was booked into the Kern County Jail on 15 counts of discharging a laser at an aircraft
His bail has been set at $152,500.
According to the Kern County Sheriff’s Office, Dennis has been accused of pointing a laser at a Sheriff’s helicopter that was patrolling the city of Wasco on Sunday, November 1 at about 8:30 p.m.
During the incident, the helicopter’s flight crew said that they received laser strikes from a location in the 1000 block of “F” in Wasco, and were able to direct patrol deputies on the ground to the location.
Deputies said when they arrived on scene, they located Dennis, who was in possession of a laser, and arrested him without incident.
Dennis had been arrested just over a week prior, on October 22nd for drug charges and carrying a concealed dirk or dagger. In September he was charged with possession of a controlled substance and drug paraphernalia. And in November of last year, while living in Oroville in northern California, he was arrested and booked into Butte County jail for disorderly conduct – public intoxication.
