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Man detained after deadly shooting at Ft. Lauderdale airport

January 6, 2017

A man has been detained after five people were killed in a shooting in Florida at the Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport. Authorities said the airport has "closed and will be for an extended period of time."

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USA Schüße auf Flughafen in Fort Lauderdale
Image: picture alliance/dpa/AP Photo/M. Herald

'Lone shooter' kills several people at airport

Esteban Santiago has been named as the suspect in the shooting. The 26-year-old - an Army National Guard veteran who served in Iraq but was discharged in 2016 for unsatisfactory performance - was immediately taken into custody.

The brother of the man - Bryan Santiago - said the suspect had been receiving psychological treatment while living in Alaska.

The Broward County Sheriff's Department said eight people had been injured and had been taken to a nearby hospital. 

A law enforcement official said the gunman told the FBI in November that the government was "controlling his mind" and was forcing him to watch so-called "Islamic State" videos.  

Jesse Davis, chief of police at Ted Stevens Anchorage International Airport, told The Associated Press that Santiago had flown out of Anchorage, Alaska, on a 9:52 p.m. Delta flight on Thursday, and that a firearm was his only piece of checked luggage.

US Senator Bill Nelson of Florida, who was on Capitol Hill but in touch with federal and state authorities, told broadcaster MSNBC that the gunman was carrying what appeared to be a US military identification card.

Authorities said the first call about the shooting came at 12:55 pm (1755 GMT). The airport had initially tweeted confirmation of "an ongoing incident in Terminal 2" near the baggage claim area.

US President Barack Obama said Friday he was "heartbroken" for the families of the victims of the deadly shooting at the Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood airport in Florida.

Florida Governor Rick Scott was at the scene and said he had spoken with president-elect Donald Trump. "This is a senseless act of evil," Scott said. "We are going to hold whoever did this accountable."

 Airport officials said there was an "incident" in Terminal 2 baggage area, from which the Atlanta-based Delta airlines generally operates. They announced that the airport has "closed and will be for an extended period time."

Suspect named

Bryan Santiago told The Associated Press that his family got a call in recent months from 26-year-old Esteban Santiago's girlfriend alerting them to the situation.

A military spokeswoman said the suspect received a general discharge from the Alaska Army National Guard last year for unsatisfactory performance. Lt. Col.

Candis Olmstead did not release details about 26-year-old Esteban Santiago's discharge in August 2016.

Puerto Rico National Guard spokesman Maj. Paul Dahlen said that Santiago was deployed to Iraq in 2010 and spent a year there with the 130th Engineer Battalion, the 1013th engineer company out of Aguadilla.

Everyone is running

During the incident, former White House spokesman Ari Fleischer wrote on Twitter that "everyone is running" after he heard shots fired while traveling through the airport. 

At least 8 people have been injured and transferred to local hospitals
At least 8 people have been injured and transferred to local hospitalsImage: AP

"All seems calm now but the police aren't letting anyone out of the airport - at least not the area where I am," said Fleischer.

ls/se (AFP, AP, Reuters)