It may seem like a harmless toy.

But one teen has admitted endangering the safety of a helicopter when he shone a powerful laser at the police chopper.

Jamie Lee Lind, 18, of Manor Road, Queenborough admitted targetting the helicopter while it was searching for a vulnerable missing person in Rushenden.

Twice he shone the beam at the helicopter for up to 20 seconds on January 16, as it hovered after finding the missing man and waiting for ground patrols to arrive.

The offender was brought to book when the crew used the onboard thermal imaging system to find the offender and diverted ground patrols to the address of Lind who was then arrested.