Posted on 07/19/2002 12:17:30 PM PDT by mhking
Copter landing surprises neighborhood
Police are investigating incident
By Brian Whitson and Patti Rosenberg
Daily Press
July 18, 2002, 3:02 PM EDT
JAMES CITY -- When John Chwaszczewski bought his house two years ago on Magruder Lane, he wanted a quiet place to relax and vacation during the summer months.
For the most part, that had been the case -- until Saturday morning when the neighborhood quickly became less of the vacation spot and more like something out of "Men In Black."
It was about 8 a.m. when Chwaszczewski, who was doing a little painting in his detached garage, heard a thunderous sound that sounded like it was right on top of him. He looked outside and saw a white helicopter hovering just 20 feet above the garage.
"I didn't know what was going on," said Chwaszczewski, who is a semi-retired construction worker who lives most of the year in Port Monmouth, N.J.
The helicopter then swooped down, just missing the top of his house and car, and landed in a vacant lot across the street, he said.
"It damned near took off the roof of my garage," Chwaszczewski said. "I ran across the street and the first thing I did was get the number of the helicopter."
The second thing Chwaszczewski did was run back inside to get his gun. When he looked out of his house, he saw a man hidden behind a tree, Chwaszczewski said. The man wore a business suit and ran over to the helicopter carrying a large black box, he said.
"My initial reaction was, this had got to be terrorists," he said. "I fired two shots. I tried to knock the windshield out of it. I don't know if I hit anything."
Chwaszczewski would not say what kind of gun he fired. He said the helicopter took off and he thought about firing more rounds but didn't for fear of making it crash in the neighborhood.
"It just happened so quick," he said.
The pilot of the helicopter insists a panel light came on and he landed as a precaution.
Police are investigating the incident to determine whether the helicopter malfunctioned or whether the pilot had planned the landing all along.
The passenger who was picked up lives across the street from where the helicopter landed.
Police say the man may not have been hiding behind the tree, but he may have been waiting for the helicopter.
The pilot said he wasn't aware shots were being fired when he landed.
Brian Whitson can be reached at 221-7220 or by e-mail at bwhitson@dailypress.com
A Thompson Contender is not a normal pistol. Single shot, long barrel, usually chambered for a rifle round. They are closer to rifles then to a .25 auto. Of course you implied that by stating same caliber but some freepers might not know what a Contender is.
Of course if it was an AR-15 the shooter should be ashamed.
Well I know of at least one guy I do not want to live next too. What's next? Well officer I thought that car hiding along side the road with a funny looking thing on the dash was a terrorist. I swear I didn't see the State Police markings.
The passenger who was picked up lives across the street from where the helicopter landed.
They know who the pilot and passenger are, now what was in the big black box?
I saw this nit-wit on the local news yesterday. My guess is he was drunk then, probably drunk now...and usually drunk. He's standing outside, no shirt with his his huge gut filling the screen, talking about how he just knew this was a terrorist attack...and "how am I supposed to know they're not terrorists". Are we to assume that all strangers are terrorists now and just start shooting at them?
This idiot needs to go back to NJ and start firing his rifle in their residential neighborhoods.
Based on the shooter's tendency to rush to conclusions, I'd say that it was probably lunch.
No you don't.
WILLIAMSBURG, Va. - A man armed with an assault-style rifle opened fire on a helicopter landing in a residential neighborhood, thinking the chopper was carrying terrorists, police said.
Helicopter pilot John S. Sutton landed his helicopter July 13 at the home of businessman John Peters to pick him up, police said.
John Chwaszczewski, a semiretired construction worker, became alarmed when he saw the chopper swoop down over his garage, about a block from Peters' home.
"Maybe I overreacted, but I did feel this was terrorism at its utmost," Chwaszczewski said.
Chwaszczewski told police the shooting was "a natural reaction," after having watched the events of Sept. 11.
A woman who identified herself as Sutton's wife said he would have no comment.
Sutton was charged with recklessly operating an aircraft, a misdemeanor, Deputy Police Chief Ken Middlebrook said Friday. If convicted, he could face a month in jail.
Chwaszczewski was charged with interfering with an aircraft, discharging a firearm, an AR-15 rifle, in a public place, reckless handling of a firearm and assaulting Sutton. He faces up to eight years in prison and $10,000 in fines if convicted.
It was an AR15. I also saw a report that he cut it up after the incident. (Mental note: someone should take his power tools away also before he hurts himself)
Yes, it did.. It only took you a couple of seconds to make all gun owners look like total fools.
Congratulations, you are a very efficient nutcase..
The idiot shooter..
Pilot could be facing a misdemeanor.
(Personally, I think maybe neither of them need to be playing with grownup toys like guns and helecopters.)
It certainly could be..
SNL could have a field day with something like this also.
"Get mah gun martha! It's them airabs and they'ze goin after the thompsons garage!"
Thank you, Mr. John "Oh what a great idiot I am" Chwaszczewski. The twit....
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