UPDATE: Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport in Florida Shooting

By Kody Fairfield

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UPDATE: 1/6/17 6:40PM EST

The suspect showed up several months ago at the FBI office in Anchorage, law enforcement officials told CNN. He was interviewed and said he was hearing voices in his head, including some telling him to join ISIS. He was taken to a hospital for a mental health evaluation, the officials said. He voluntarily checked himself in, the officials explained.

CNN is also reporting that the suspect joined the National Guard in Puerto Rico in 2007. In April 2010, he went to Iraq for 10 months. A spokeswoman for the Alaska Army National Guard said Santiago was in the Army Reserves before he joined the guard there in November 2014. Lt. Col. Candis Olmstead said Santiago was discharged in August for unsatisfactory performance.

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UPDATE: 1/6/17 5:30PM EST

Brother of airport shooting suspect says he received psychological treatment in Alaska, served in National Guard, per @AP pic.twitter.com/rtZq9ZkiOY

— WSVN 7 News (@wsvn) January 6, 2017

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UPDATE: 1/6/17 5:13PM EST

Law enforcement officials told NBC News they believe Santiago flew Delta from Anchorage, Alaska and caught a connecting Delta flight from Minneapolis-St. Paul to Fort Lauderdale.

A brother of the suspect, Bryan Santiago, told NBC News that Esteban grew up in Puerto Rico, where he served in the National Guard. He was deployed to Iraq for a year, and later moved to Alaska, where he worked as a security guard, Bryan Santiago said. The brother speculated that the shooter might have had a “flashback” from his military experience, although said he said his brother had not been diagnosed with PTSD or other post-Iraq issues.

KTUU (Alaska)– According to Candis Olmstead, the Director of Public Affairs for Alaska National Guard, Esteban Santiago served in the Alaska National Guard until July of 2016.

NBC through information from law enforcement says that Santiago is 26 years old.

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At around 1:00 PM EST a suspect, reported to be Esteban Santiago by Florida Sen. Bill Nelson, opened fire in the Terminal 2 baggage claim of the Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport in Florida. The suspect is in custody according to authorities and no motive has been identified.

.@browardsheriff Scott Israel: Suspect was taken into custody w/o incident. pic.twitter.com/mSeluTPrcK

— Broward Sheriff (@browardsheriff) January 6, 2017

Reports from Sun-Sentinel say that 5 people have been killed, and 8 more are hospitalized.

The Sun-Sentinel reports that the suspect was carrying military identification.

Reports from Chip LaMarca, the Broward county commissioner said,

The shooter was a passenger on a Canadian with a checked gun. He claimed his bag and took his gun from baggage and went to the bathroom to load it. Came out shooting people in baggage claim. There were 13 total shot, 5 dead, 8 transported to hospital.

“It was very surreal,” John Schlicher, a witness, told Fox News. “He did not say a word.” He described the shooter as a slender man with dark hair, likely in his 30s, wearing a Star Wars T-shirt.

Below are the latest tweets from the Ft. Lauderdale- Hollywood International Airport’s official twitter account:

✈️ TRAFFIC ALERT: Updated FAA statement on @FLLFlyer status: pic.twitter.com/FnpfqNb4NK

— The FAA (@FAANews) January 6, 2017

#FLL is currently closed and will be for an extended period of time. Please contact your airline about your flight https://t.co/Uwbaa6n6aB.

— Ft. Laude-Hlwd Int’l (@FLLFlyer) January 6, 2017

All services are temporarily suspended at #FLL. Please contact your air carrier about your flight information. https://t.co/Uwbaa6n6aB

— Ft. Laude-Hlwd Int’l (@FLLFlyer) January 6, 2017

 

 

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