SEK man accused of shining laser, shooting rifle at helicopter searching for escapee
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A Kansas Highway Patrol aircraft was targeted with a laser and gunfire on the same night troopers were helping search for an escaped inmate.
A video posted by the Highway Patrol shows the suspect shining a laser and even a rifle up at them in the sky.
The flight crew located the person and directed ground units toward the area. KHP says the man then fired several shots at the aircraft before leaving in a vehicle. Troopers stopped the vehicle and made an arrest.
No one aboard the aircraft was injured.
That suspect, 45-year-old Jason Elmer Zwahlen, of Oswego, was booked into the Cherokee County Jail the night of Tuesday, September 22.
He posted his $10,000 bond and is due back in court later this month.
The Cherokee County Sheriff's Office later thanked KHP for its assistance and said it was thankful no one was injured or killed that night.
Based on on-screen data, it appears this incident took place near the Labette County/Cherokee County line as authorities were looking for Terron Allen, who was seen on surveillance cameras in the 1500 block of Southeast Messer Road earlier that day.
Officers established a perimeter and searched roughly four miles with help from KHP, the Kansas Bureau of Investigation, and several other agencies.
Allen had escaped from Cherokee County custody late Monday, September 21, after slipping out of his handcuffs while being transported near Columbus.
Allen was caught Thursday, September 24.
These charges are simply allegations. Zwahlen is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty in a court of law.
