Georgia Man Charged with Shooting Patrol Helicopter

A Talbot County, Ga., man made an initial appearance in U.S. District Court Thursday after he allegedly shot at and damaged a Georgia State Patrol helicopter Wednesday.

James Fryer, 59, has been charged by the Federal Bureau of Investigation with destruction of an aircraft. He has pleaded not guilty, his court-appointed attorney, David Helmick told the Ledger-Enquirer .

In an affidavit attached to the criminal complaint against Fryer, an FBI agent says that Fryer admitted to firing three rounds from a shotgun into the air while a helicopter was overhead, but denies that he ever aimed the weapon at the aircraft.

After landing the helicopter's flight crew discovered damage to both its main rotors.

The patrol helicopter was in Talbot County on Wednesday as part of the Georgia Governor's Marijuana Eradication Task Force.