LA gunman planned to kill 'multiple' TSA agents - FBI

LOS ANGELES - The gunman who allegedly killed a security officer at Los Angeles airport carried a note saying he planned to murder "multiple" agents, officials said Saturday, announcing charges against him.

A prosecutor told how Paul Ciancia allegedly opened fire at "point blank range" on Gerardo Hernandez, the first Transportation Security Agency (TSA) agent killed since the TSA was created after September 11, 2001.

The dead officer's widow meanwhile said she was "truly devastated" by his death. "He was a joyful person, always smiling and took pride in his duty to the American public," said Ana Hernandez.

Ciancia, who used a Smith and Wesson assault rifle and a large stock of ammo in the attack, faces a possible death penalty on charges of murdering a federal officer and committing violence at an international airport.

The gun rampage triggered chaos at LA international (LAX) airport Friday, disrupting over 1,500 flights. The airport only fully reopened Saturday, more than 24 hours later.

Describing how the shooting started, a prosecutor said Ciancia pulled a ".223-caliber M&P-15 assault rifle out of his bag and fired multiple rounds at point-blank range" at Hernandez, 39, shortly after 9:00 a.m. in LAX's Terminal 3.

The shots injured the TSA officer but did not kill him. The 23-year-old gunman then went up a nearby escalator, and came back down to "shoot the wounded officer again," said US Attorney Andre Birotte.

Ciancia then proceeded further into the Terminal, shooting a further four people including two other TSA officers, before being detained after a gunfight with LAX police.

The alleged gunman, who remains in hospital and has not yet answered any questions from investigators, carried a note in his bag indicating that he "targeted" especially TSA officer, for whom he felt "anger and malice."

The handwritten note, found in a bag taken into the airport, showed that he "made a conscious decision to kill multiple TSA employees," said David Bowdich, the head of the FBI's LA office.

"In the note that was handwritten by the defendant, that was signed by the defendant, we found a statement where he made a conscious decision to kill multiple TSA employees," said Bowdich.

"He addressed them at one point in the letter, and stated that he wanted to 'instill fear into their traitorous minds.'"

LA mayor Eric Garcetti said Friday that Ciancia had lots more ammunition when he was arrested. "There were more than 100 more rounds that could have literally killed everybody in that terminal," he said.

An estimated 1,550 scheduled flights with some 167,000 passengers were impacted Friday amid the resulting ground stop, they said.

During the shooting spree, which lasted under 10 minutes, he approached a number of people cowering in the terminal and pointed his gun at them, asking if they "were TSA," according to The LA Times newspaper.

If they answered "no," he moved on, the Times reported, citing witnesses who said he cursed the TSA repeatedly.

"This act of violence reminds us of the risks the brave men and women of TSA face every day as they work to protect the traveling public," said Rand Beers, acting secretary of Homeland Security.

While officials have not released details about the suspect's condition, the Times said he was hospitalized in critical condition after being shot in the head and leg.

The FBI said Ciancia was a Los Angeles resident originally from the eastern state of New Jersey.

Before the shooting, Ciancia texted his younger brother that he might harm himself, The Washington Post reported. This led the shooter's father to contact local New Jersey police, who in turn contacted their counterparts in Los Angeles.

LAPD officers visited Ciancia's home on Friday but could not find him, according to The Post.

The shooting came just weeks ahead of the stressful end-of-year US travel period that includes Thanksgiving -- traditionally the busiest travel time of the year -- and Christmas.

source: interaksyon.com

Motive still unclear behind LAX shooting

LOS ANGELES - Police were hunting for a motive Saturday after a gunman opened fire at the Los Angeles International Airport, killing an unarmed security agent, terrifying hundreds, and sowing chaos at the busy transport hub.

Panicked travelers scrambled to escape after the shooter - identified as 23-year-old Paul Anthony Ciancia - armed with an assault rifle, blasted through a security checkpoint at the airport shortly after 9:00 am (1600 GMT) Friday.

Ciancia then walked calmly through the terminal seeking further victims. He was eventually stopped when police shot and wounded him.

TV footage showed people diving to the floor at the sound of gunfire and scrambling to escape the terminal.

The dead agent was the first Transportation Security Administration (TSA) employee killed in the line of duty since the group was set up following the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks.

The lone gunman, who reportedly had a grudge against the TSA, also wounded seven people in the rampage.

But he was still carrying plenty of ammunition when he was arrested, said Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti.

"There were more than 100 more rounds that could have literally killed everybody in that terminal today," he said, praising airport police. "If it were not for their actions, there could have been a lot more damage," he said.

While reports suggested Ciancia -- who was shot several times before he went down -- was a disgruntled loner, the Federal Bureau of Investigation said it could not rule out terrorism.

The shooter opened fire in a crowded terminal of the country's third-busiest airport.

He "came into Terminal Three, pulled an assault rifle out of a bag and began to open fire," said Patrick Gannon, head of the airport police.

"He proceeded up into the screening area ... and continued shooting," he said.

Police chased the gunman, "engaged him in gunfire... and were able to successfully take him into custody."

'Disappointment in the government'

The TSA, which employs screeners at airports, confirmed that one of its employees had died. "Multiple Transportation Security Officers were shot, one fatally," said a TSA statement.

The FBI later named the shooter, and said that he was a Los Angeles resident originally from the eastern state of New Jersey.

Police found a note on the gunman voicing "disappointment in the government" but that he did not want to harm "innocent people," a law enforcement official told the Los Angeles Times newspaper.

It appeared that Ciancia was hunting for TSA agents. During the shooting spree, which lasted less than 10 minutes, he approached a number of people cowering in the terminal and pointed his gun at them, asking if there "were TSA."

If they answered "no," then he moved on, the Times reported, citing witnesses who said he cursed the TSA repeatedly.

Late Friday, the TSA identified the dead officer as Gerardo Hernandez, 39, US media reported.

Before the shooting, Ciancia texted his younger brother that he might harm himself, the Washington Post reported Saturday. This led the shooter's father to contact local New Jersey police, who in turn contacted their counterparts in Los Angeles.

LAPD officers visited Ciancia's home on Friday but could not find him, according to the Post.

Brian Adamick, 43, said he saw a wounded TSA worker, with a bloodied ankle, board a shuttle bus helping passengers escape.

"It looked like it was straight out of the movies," he said.

Some 750 flights were disrupted after the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) issued a national ground-stop.

Although there was no indication that other people were involved in the attack, the FBI said it could not rule out terrorism.

"It would be premature to comment on a motivation at this time and joint investigators have neither ruled out terrorism, nor ruled it in," said an FBI statement.

This being Los Angeles, a number of celebrities were caught up in the action.

Filming of an episode of the hit TV show "Mad Men" underway in nearby Terminal Four was halted, a crew member wrote on Twitter.

Actor James Franco posted a "selfie" picture of himself on a plane stopped on the tarmac by the incident.

"Some s**tbag shot up the place," he wrote in the first of a series of tweets, ending some five hours later with a more relieved message: "WE'RE OUT! - everyone was calm."

The shooting comes just weeks ahead of the stressful end-of-year travel period that includes Thanksgiving - traditionally the busiest travel time of the year - and Christmas.

source: interaksyon.com

One dead as gunman opens fire at Los Angeles international airport

A gunman opened fire with an assault rifle at Los Angeles' international (LAX) airport Friday, killing a security agent and wounding seven people, officials said.

Panicked travelers scrambled to escape after the lone suspect, named as 23-year-old Paul Anthony Ciancia, pulled out the gun and shot his way through a security checkpoint before being stopped in an exchange of fire with police.

The motive for the shooting was unclear, but the Federal Bureau of Investigation said it could not rule out terrorism. The gunman was reported to be in critical condition in hospital.



The shooter "came into Terminal Three, pulled an assault rifle out of a bag and began to open fire ... he proceeded up into the screening area ... and continued shooting," said LAX police chief Patrick Gannon.

He then doubled back into the main terminal area, as travelers rushed to get out, and reached a Burger King restaurant before officers "engaged him in gunfire ... and were able to successfully take him into custody."

The Transportation Security Administration (TSA), which employs screeners and guards at airports, confirmed one of its employees had died.

"Multiple Transportation Security Officers (TSOs) were shot, one fatally," said a TSA statement emailed to AFP.

The Los Angeles Times newspaper cited sources saying the shooter, who opened fire shortly after 9:00 a.m. in the crowded terminal was also believed to be a TSA employee at the airport, which is the country's third-biggest hub.

Gannon would not comment on that report, but said: "We believe at this point that there was a lone shooter," and that he "was the only person who was armed in this incident."

Of the seven people injured, six were taken to hospital, said the head of the LA Fire Department James Featherstone, briefing reporters for the first time a couple of hours after the incident.

One eyewitness recounted the shooter dressed in grayish-green clothing with an assault rifle opening fire as he went up an escalator and through the security area.

Live television footage showed armed police on the top of parking structures, apparently still looking for a possible gunman, while multiple ambulances were parked outside a terminal building.

Flights were disrupted and a "ground stop" was put in place, but about an hour after the incident erupted aircraft could be seen resuming landings at the airport, which is west of downtown Los Angeles.

Eyewitness Brian Adamick, 43, said he was preparing to board a flight when he saw people running through the terminal, away from a security area. He and others responded by going through an emergency exit onto the tarmac.

"While I was on the tarmac, I heard two gunshots from the same area where the people had been running and screaming," he told the LA Times.

A short time later shuttle buses began helping passengers to leave and he saw a wounded airport worker, from the TSA, board one bus, with a bloodied ankle.

"It looked like it was straight out of the movies," said Adamick.

Another non-US passenger, named only as Alex, said he was waiting in line on an upper terminal level when the shooter opened fire on the floor below.

"He shot one guy downstairs," he told KTLA 5, adding that the gunman then went up some escalators toward a security area.

"He fired several shots when he went through the security check," he said, adding: "He just went straight through the security check."

Eyewitness Eric Williams described the gunman to ABC7 television.

"We were standing in the TSA line to get checked through and all of a sudden we heard a shotgun. I saw the shooter and he was a Caucasian probably 18 to 25 years old," he said.

TV footage showed one person on a gurney, being loaded into an ambulance. Another victim was seen being rushed away on a wheelchair.

Hundreds of passengers could be seen streaming away from at least one terminal building, while multiple ambulances and emergency vehicles rushed to the scene.

The White House said President Barack Obama was kept up to date on the shooting.

source: interaksyon.com