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Jacob Samuel Winckler, of D.C., faces a federal charge of aiming a laser pointer at an aircraft.
WASHINGTON — A D.C. man was charged Monday with a federal felony for allegedly aiming a laser pointer at Marine One while President Donald Trump was onboard.
Jacob Samuel Winckler faces one count of aiming a laser pointer at an aircraft. The charge is a felony that carries up to five years in prison upon conviction.
Winckler was arrested Saturday near the White House by U.S. Secret Service Officer Diego Santiago, who was monitoring the area while Marine One was taking off from the south grounds of the White House with the president onboard. According to charging documents, a Santiago noticed Winckler walking shirtless on Constitution Avenue while “talking to himself and being loud.”
When Santiago shined a flashlight at the man, Winckler alleged responded by aiming a red laser pointer at the officer’s eyes. As the officer began to approach Winckler, he allegedly looked up and pointed the beam at Marine One, which had just taken off and was still close overhead. Santiago immediately placed Winckler under arrest.
“[Winckler’s] conduct posed a risk of flash blindness and pilot disorientation, especially during low-level flight near other helicopters (U.S. Park Police, U.S. Marine Corps) and the Washington Monument,” Santiago wrote in an affidavit.
Laser strikes can potentially incapacitate pilots, according to the Federal Aviation Administration. The agency says more than 12,000 such strikes were reported by pilots last year alone. More than 60 laser strikes on aircraft have been reported in D.C. so far in 2025.
According to the affidavit, as Winckler was being arrested he got on his knees and began saying, “I should apologize to Donald Trump.” Winckler also allegedly told police he did not know he couldn’t point the laser at Marine One and said he “points the laser at all kinds of things.”
Winckler was scheduled to make his initial appearance before a magistrate judge in federal court Monday afternoon.
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