FRESNO  -   Today Carlos Villa-Lozano, 31, and Paulina Silva Aguilar, 33, both of Fresno, Calif., entered guilty pleas to aiming the beam of a laser pointer at a California Highway Patrol aircraft, U.S. Attorney McGregor W. Scott announced.

According to their plea agreements, on July 22, 2018, both Villa-Lozano and Silva used a dangerously bright green laser pointer, a Model 301, to strike a CHP fixed wing aircraft approximately 12 times. The laser strikes caused the CHP airmen to experience temporary blindness and disorientation. Villa-Lozano obstructed justice by materially misrepresenting to the FBI the nature of his involvement in the crime.

The Model 301 laser pointer has a prominent warning label that indicates that the laser is dangerous and should not be pointed at the eye. The Model 301 is advertised as emitting 500 milliwatts of power and having the ability to burn a match. According to the Food and Drug Administration, which regulates laser products, handheld laser devices are limited to 5 milliwatts output power. Lasers that emit more than 5 and up to 500 milliwatts of power are very dangerous and may cause permanent damage to the eye. Lasers pose a particular hazard to pilots, since sustained visual interference caused by lasers could interfere with the safe operation of the aircraft. According to the Federal Aviation Administration, this year there have been 15.7 laser incidents per day involving aircraft in the United States.

This case is the product of an investigation by the FBI and the California Highway Patrol. Assistant U.S. Attorney Karen Escobar is prosecuting the case.

Villa-Lozano and Silva are scheduled for sentencing on Jan. 30, 2020. Villa-Lozano and Silva face a maximum statutory penalty of five years in prison and a $250,000 fine. Any sentence, however, would be determined at the discretion of the court after consideration of any applicable statutory factors and the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, which take into account a number of variables.