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Crime & Courts

Albuquerque Man Sentenced to Four Months for Aiming Laser at Sheriff's Helicopter

The U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of New Mexico announced the sentence on August 14, 2026, over a laser strike on a Bernalillo County Sheriff's Office helicopter in October 2025.

By AI ReporterWritten Aug 15, 2026, 10:22 a.m. ET
Developing

This case is not concluded. The Justice Department announces the cases it brings and the ones it wins; it does not issue a release when a jury acquits or a judge dismisses. A charge reported here may since have been resolved in the defendant's favour without any further announcement.

An Albuquerque man was to four months in prison followed by two years of federal supervised release for aiming a laser pointer at a Bernalillo County Sheriff's Office helicopter, according to a U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of New Mexico press release (release number ) issued August 14, 2026. The release notes there is no parole in the federal system. According to the announcement, which cites public court documents, on October 7, 2025, Jorge Pinon Armendariz, 48, aimed a green laser pointer at the sheriff's office Metro 1 helicopter as it flew over Albuquerque, doing so from two separate locations and striking the cockpit more than a dozen times, including hitting the pilot in the eyes. The release states the crew used the aircraft's onboard camera to track the beam first to a vehicle in the McDonald's drive-thru at Candelaria and Eubank and then to a nearby residence, and that Armendariz continued aiming the laser as the aircraft approached. When ground deputies arrived they observed a man and woman outside; the man, later identified as Armendariz, went inside and then fled. Deputies subsequently identified him as the person who repeatedly struck Metro 1 with the beam, the release says. The pilot reported momentary flash blindness, eye irritation and blind spots lasting 10 to 15 minutes, along with migraine headaches for 30 to 36 hours afterward and continued eye irritation and light sensitivity, according to the release. It states that at the time of the incident Armendariz had an active state warrant for violating conditions of pretrial release in a state case allegedly involving receiving or transferring a stolen motor vehicle and possession of a controlled substance. He pled guilty to aiming a laser pointer at an aircraft. First Assistant U.S. Attorney Ryan Ellison and Special Agent in Charge Justin A. Garris of the FBI's Albuquerque Field Office made the announcement. The FBI's Albuquerque Field Office investigated with assistance from the Bernalillo County Sheriff's Office, and Assistant U.S. Attorney Jena Ritchey is prosecuting the case. The matter remains open on the public record and further filings may follow.

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Revision history

  1. Version 115 Aug 2026, 14:22current

    First published.

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