Esteban Santiago, the Ft Lauderdale shooter
Yesterday, Esteban Santiago, flew into Ft Lauderdale airport on a connecting flight from Minneapolis on his way from Anchorage, Alaska where he’s been living recently. The former Puerto Rico National Guardsman, who had recently been discharged with a General Under Honorable conditions discharge, then took a firearm out of his checked luggage and the ammunition, charged the weapon and began shooting the people who were waiting or their own luggage. He killed 5 and wounded eight people.
According to Heavy, Santiago had walked into an FBI office in Anchorage and told the agents that voices in his head were urging him to support ISIS.
Law enforcement sources told CBS News that the FBI contact came in November 2016, when Santiago walked into an FBI office in Anchorage and told agents he was being forced to fight for ISIS. He was hospitalized in a psychiatric facility after police were called there. “He also said his mind was being controlled by the CIA to watch ISIS videos,” reported CBS News.
One of CNN’s experts suggested on television that some have interpreted the hand signal in the above photo as potentially being an “ISIS finger sign,” although that is far from proven. A 2014 report said ISIS fighters were “now using a single, raised index finger as the symbol of their cause” that refers to the tawhid, “the belief in the oneness of God and a key component of the Muslim religion.” Again, this is far from clear in Santiago’s case, and his finger signal could mean something else entirely.
Piro confirmed the FBI contact. He said in the news conference that Santiago came in voluntarily and spoke with FBI agents. “He (Santiago) clearly stated he did not intend to harm anybody. However, his erratic behavior concerned FBI agents who were interviewing him… he was taken into custody by the local police and taken to a medical facility for a mental health evaluation,” Piro said. “We looked at his contacts and did our inter agency checks and at that point” the case was closed.
Yet, he was still in possession of a firearm. And his family is blaming his behavior on his deployment to Iraq.
Category: Dumbass Bullshit
No surprise here. Haven forbid we allow any law enforcement agencies to do there job
Skippy,
Why don’t you learn how to spell correctly before something you wrote? It makes you look stupid. Heaven is not spelled haven, and this is the correct use of the word “their”.
“Why don’t you learn how to spell correctly before something you wrote?” Um. Er. Dave. Would you like to rewrite that? It’s a mess. Also, punctuation goes inside a quotation mark. Thus, you should have written “their.” not their”. Do you see how this game is played?
Dave,
“Why don’t you learn how to spell correctly before something you wrote?”
I suggest that you enroll in a remedial grammar class, that sentence has no structure.
Here’s a thought: If you are gonna make negative comments about someone else’s use of the language, consider proofreading prior to posting the comment. Dave’s way is much more entertaining.
Alright, settle down or I’m turning this car around, and you won’t get any Dairy Queen sundaes.
This entire event is just fucking weird.
Checks a gun and loaded mags and gets on a plane
flies to Florida
gets bag at luggage turn style
loads the weapon and empties magazines into people waiting for luggage
sets empty gun down and lays on the ground to be arrested.
That is just sketchy. Why fly anywhere he could of went bat shit in Alaska. And these type of terrorist attackers normally kill them selves so they can get their 40 sheep.
A doctor would use different terms, but it would mean the same thing: the playbook in his head was on a whole other level than what passes for reality for most of us.
Possibly because in Alaska you can carry without permit and people at the anchorage airport would be much more likely to shoot his ass as soon as they saw him loading.
I had thought you couldn’t fly with both ammo and a firearm in the same bag? Or did he even tell them he had a firearm and ammo in his bag?
Ammunition can be loaded in a magazine and in the same bag as an unloaded firearm. I posted the relevant information from the FAA website below. (scroll down a bit)
In July 2005, I flew from from Salt Lake City to New Orleans with a 30.06, a .270, a handgun, and ammunition for all in locked case checked baggage. I suppose I could have sprayed the baggage area in New Orleans had I wanted to, but that wasn’t my plan.
How soon before we lose the ability to check an unloaded firearm in our baggage? I can see that happening because of this crazy ass dumb fuck.
They’ll push for that no doubt, not caring that baggage claim areas are outside of security and therefore anyone can walk in and start shooting….
At the least, on CNN yesterday their security commentators were explaining that fact over and over.
If the whiners cause that, there are going to be one hell of a lot of mad hunters and states that can’t sell their hunting licenses! Anyone going to say, Colorado on an elk hunt from back east…..how are you going to get your weapon to Colorado? walk maybe?
I get the impression that his family knew he was a bit ‘off’ before he did anything at all, including enlisting.
CNN did a “white out” Zimmerman style on the shooters photo to bring the race card into play.
Well, with a name like Zimmerman it is easy. With a name like esteban santiago, he isn’t exactly pretty fly for a white guy.
They’ll be calling him “Stephen St. John” before you know it.
Or “Saint James”, whatever.
1. I’ve said for years that you do not need to board a plane to kill a large group of people … whether with a firearm or a bomb. All you need to do is stand in line at security screening checkpoint or at baggage claim. These are the two least secure areas with huge amounts of people milling around. Anyone can walk into both areas.
2. From the FAA website:
A. Ammunition is prohibited in carry-on baggage, but may be transported in checked baggage.
B. Firearm magazines and ammunition clips, whether loaded or empty, must be securely boxed or included within a hard-sided case containing an unloaded firearm.
C. Small arms ammunition, including ammunition not exceeding .75 caliber and shotgun shells of any gauge, may be carried in the same hard-sided case as the firearm.
3. Why did he have firearms AFTER being hospitalized for mental issues? He interacted with both the FBI and the local police. Who dropped the ball, and why?
I am not convinced this “was not” a false flag, mind control event by the CIA…..not like it hasn’t been done many times before imho!
Even to my untrained mind it was obvious this guy is not right. A Puerto Rican who lived in PR since age 2 moving to cold ass Alaska, come on what part of “here’s your sign” was not evident to LE. Then the question that begs answering by Fort Lauderdale Airport Police is WTF was this guy not DOT after killing 5 people and wounding the others? Now we get to hear about “all of the bad things” he saw as an engineer in Iraq and how its not his fault. There was something reported about his being in an altercation on the plane and that probably was the catalyst.
Investigated for child porn.
Told the FBI he is an ISIS recruit.
Committed to a mental hospital.
His own family said he was crazy.
HOW WAS HE NOT ON THE NO FLY LIST?
How did he get a gun?
How many existing gun laws were broken?
None…when they evaluated him he was not adjudged a threat to anyone. Being slightly “off” does not preclude someone from owning a gun. Absent a finding from the mental evaluation and the FBI, by what legal due process to you confiscate?
Was it voluntary or i voluntary commitment? Investigated for child porn is not a conviction. The ISIS thing should have done it maybe.
I think that once they dig a little deeper, they will find the typical patterns of Schizophrenia. That interview with the FBI is kinda a huge red flag.
However, we like to live in a society where one is not locked up because one is weird, or because two people declare one to be nuts.
No priors for violence, but “voices” saying “be violent” = time bomb.
I wonder if the low pressure/O2 was the trigger?
Actuall, IIRC, he was facing a DV charge for choking his gf and violation of the RO.
IOW, he shouldn’t have had a gun based on that alone.
I hadn’t read that, SEA, but you’re correct. Unless the girl friend forgot to tell the judge that he had a gun(s). Kinda hard to order the confiscation of firearms, if the judge was unaware of it. I wonder if the authorities in Alaska were aware he even owned a gun(s).
Thode charges should have prevented buying a firearm. But, if he already had a legal gun how would they know?
When will people figure out that “First Blood” was just a movie?
“his finger signal could mean something else entirely”
Well, I don’t see a booger on it so that rules that out.
Lets see how many come up with “It was his decision” because by now, every young adult would know between right and wrong.
I’m stunned. You mean we set up a security state with a bunch of ill trained and half stupid union thugs and the government still can’t protect us? The only answer is obvious. Ground all air traffic in the US. That’s right, ban flying
Have to say it: Laws, rules, regulations are (in general) for “average” folks in the “average” population. Fuckups, crazies ain’t gonna comply. There’ll not be a perfect world where we can all enjoy peace, joy, love, and understanding. I don’t know how to get the shitheads away from me and mine (or yours). I know there are too many people on this planet. One idea is to keep folks who hail from regions of cultural shitheadedness outta our country. Also stay away from crowds. Stay alert. Stay armed up. A lot of us here took an oath-remember it. 13 days.
And as soon as I saw this assclown in his keffiyeh, I immediately said, “Yip, another terrorist,” to which some liberal fuckstick next to me went off. Meh.
And if we’re 24 hours in and the FBI hasn’t ruled it out yet (and they haven’t) then it’s a real good chance it is.
And we’ve learned nothing from other airport attacks. Just the occasional walk thru of an armed security person could have caused this little punk to think twice. It’s obvious that he wasn’t willing to die for his actions….
If he hadn’t taken so many lives and ruined so many more, this would be funny. The guy was a walking, talking “Help Me!” billboard.
Yep.
In EMS we have a saying: if the patient says he feels like he’s going to die, believe him (until/unless proven otherwise).
So if a guy walks into an FBI office and says he feels compelled to support ISIS….???
Elsewhere is the US, an FBI agent is probably threatened with “shape up or we’ll reassign you to Alaska!”
So how do they threaten an agent in Alaska?
Someone should be fired over this.
Red Flags Everywhere….when will “we” LISTEN to what’s being said/seen/done and ACT? I mean come on guys, he even CAME RIGHT TO YOU!
Received a general discharge from the National Guard in Aug 2016:
Esteban Santiago was discharged from the New Jersey National Guard (NJNG), not the Alaska National Guard. SOFREP spoke with a source within the Alaska National Guard and he was reportedly drilling in Alaska prior to receiving a general discharge in Aug. 2016. He still belonged to the New Jersey National Guard administratively (his HOR or home of record was still in New Jersey) and was supposed to send his training certificate into the NJNG upon the completion of each drill. He received a general discharge after being declared AWOL and missing several drill weekends. This is the “unsatisfactory performance” other news sites are reporting. He was recently demoted as well.
https://sofrep.com/71769/five-things-know-ft-lauderdale-airport-shooter/
VIDEO of the shooting:
http://www.tmz.com/2017/01/08/ft-lauderdale-shooting-first-shots-video/
We’re being lied to by the media and our government!
http://www.judicialwatch.org/blog/2017/01/airport-shooter-converted-islam-identified-aashiq-hammad-years-joining-army/