Man Indicted for Shooting at Minnesota Firefighting Plane

Minneapolis, MN (MinnesotaNow) - A federal grand jury has indicted a Minnesota man accused of shooting at an airplane involved in firefighting efforts in northern Minnesota earlier this year.

Federal Charges Filed in Firefighting Aircraft Shooting

The U.S. Attorney's Office for Minnesota says 48-year-old Daniel Christian Pettit of rural Orr was arraigned Monday at the federal courthouse in Minneapolis on charges of damaging an aircraft and discharging a firearm during a crime of violence.

St. Louis County jail photo

Pilot Discovered Aircraft Damage After Landing

According to the indictment, Pettit "knowingly and willfully damaged and disabled a firefighting aircraft using a firearm while the aircraft was in the special aircraft jurisdiction of the United States." The indictment states that the aircraft was being used to fight a forest fire in northern Minnesota on the evening of May 15. After landing, the pilot discovered damage that appeared to have been caused by gunfire.

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Aircraft Was Fighting Northern Minnesota Wildfire

Federal prosecutors say Pettit, following his arrest on unrelated state charges, told investigators that he fired a 12-gauge shotgun and a .308-caliber rifle when the firefighting aircraft was nearby. Pettit claimed he was only crow hunting.