LOGAN COUNTY, Ohio — Two Lakeview men were arrested Sunday night after a laser was pointed at an Ohio State Highway Patrol helicopter assisting in the search for a missing 71-year-old man.

The helicopter was searching for James Beckman, who has been missing since Saturday morning. The vehicle Beckman was driving was last seen around 6:30 a.m. Saturday in the parking lot of Lowe's in Wapakoneta.

Beckman was driving a white 2000 Honda CR-V with a gray rear hatch and a green driver's side door.

The OSHP helicopter had been searching the area around Lowe's and Walmart in Wapakoneta before expanding the search east toward Beckman's home in Lakeview.

According to a Logan County Sheriff's Office report, the incident happened around 9:22 p.m. Sunday near the intersection of Township Road 88 and Township Road 224.

The helicopter crew notified dispatchers that someone in a vehicle was shining a blue laser at the aircraft.

As a deputy responded to the area, the helicopter crew continued tracking the vehicle and reported that its occupants had stopped along Township Road 224 and pointed the laser at the aircraft a second time.

According to the report, the driver, Garth Hobart, 43, fled at a high rate of speed after spotting a Sheriff's Office cruiser.

The deputy activated his emergency lights and siren, but the vehicle continued at a high rate of speed, running a stop sign at Township Road 224 and Township Road 93 before turning north onto Township Road 93.

During the pursuit, the helicopter crew reported seeing the driver throw an object from the vehicle.

The vehicle eventually stopped just north of Township Road 224 in Auglaize County, where both Hobart and his passenger, Zachary Potter, 41, were detained.

Hobart told the deputy he believed he had been shining a flashlight at a drone and did not realize it was a helicopter. He denied having a laser in the vehicle or on his person.

Potter told deputies he was unaware that Hobart had pointed anything out of the vehicle toward the helicopter.

Deputies from the Logan County Sheriff's Office and Auglaize County Sheriff's Office responded to assist.

During a search of the vehicle, deputies reported finding four pipes containing burnt residue, numerous small plastic bags, some containing a white powdery substance, and a digital scale.

The items, along with both men's cellphones, were seized as evidence.

Hobart and Potter were transported to the Logan County Jail, where they were booked on drug trafficking allegations.

The Ohio State Highway Patrol plans to pursue a separate charge against Hobart for interfering with the operation of an aircraft using a laser.

The case was forwarded to Logan County Common Pleas Court for review.