Oregon man charged with shining green laser at CBP helicopter in Portland as anti-ICE protests rage on

An Oregon man has been charged with shining a green laser at a US Customs and Border Protection helicopter in Portland amid rowdy anti-ICE protests in the city, federal prosecutors announced Thursday.

Brian Keith Kapileo Nepaial, 38, allegedly pointed the device at a federal chopper on Oct. 3, forcing the pilots to land the aircraft early, the Oregon US District Attorney’s Office said in a press release.

When the FBI searched Nepaial’s home a week later, they found a laser, along with more than 100 grams of methamphetamine and “evidence of drug trafficking,” according to the DA’s office.

Nepaial allegedly pointed the laser at the CBP helicopter as it was passing over his home while he was smoking on the porch, according to federal court documents.

The pilots circled back over the house, and watched Nepaial creep back into his home.

“Laser strikes are a serious matter with potentially deadly repercussions. They put the lives of the
pilots and the public at risk,” said Scott E. Bradford, US Attorney for the District of Oregon.

On Oct. 10, the FBI entered Nepaial’s residence, and allegedly found him barricaded inside his bathroom, with the laser on his nightstand, next to a plastic bag of meth and a pipe.

Aiming a laser at a plane is only punishable by five years, but Nepaial faces up to 40 years in federal prison for possession of drugs, according to the press release.

Nepaial was on probation for distribution of drugs in Washington County, authorities said.

Five days after Nepaial’s alleged crime, antifa organizers in Portland published an online flyer encouraging supporters to play “laser tag” by shining lights on federal aircrafts to ground them.

“Antifa domestic terrorists WILL NOT overrun our cities. We will bust their networks and bring every one of them to justice,” read a statement from the Department of Homeland Security after the flyer was published.

In September, another agitator, Hector Miranda-Mendoza, was accused of shining a laser at a CBP helicopter in Portland.

Downtown Portland has become a “war zone”, according to residents, with anti-ICE protesters frequently clashing with federal law enforcement.

Since June 13, the Oregon District Attorney’s Office has charged 34 agitators over violence outside a local Immigration and Customs Enforcement building.

The Department of Homeland Security has requested federal assistance in Portland, but President Trump’s attempt to deploy the National Guard has been blocked by the courts.