The Provo Police Department is looking for someone in the area who shined lasers in the eyes of pilots flying over town.

Laser pointers can temporarily blind pilots and, according to Sgt. Nisha King with the police department, increases the risk of fatal errors. The Federal Aviation Administration website reads: “Aiming a laser at an aircraft is a serious safety risk and violates federal law.” The Provo Police Department is also working with the FAA in its investigation.

King told the Daily Herald that the only thing investigators know at this time is that the lasers are coming from the west side of the freeway.

“So we worked with (the FAA), we worked with the operations tower at Provo airport to try to get the GPS location of the vicinity of where the person with the laser pointer is,” King said.

According to video released by the police department, there have been 11 laser pointing incidents in Provo since November. King added that there have been 240 reports to the FAA since November across the state.

She also added that the incidents occurred primarily on commercial flights passing over Provo, not necessarily those landing at Provo airport. The Provo PD video contained information taken from the FAA’s “Lose the Laser” informational video, which says the consequences include fines of up to $250,000 and five years in prison.

“At the end of the day, it’s a security issue,” King said.

The department asked anyone with information about the incidents to call dispatch at 801-852-6210 or email Officer Steven Brough at [email protected]

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