Esteban Santiago and the 2017 Fort Lauderdale Airport Massacre
Overview
Esteban Santiago-Ruiz carried out a mass shooting at Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport in Broward County, Florida, on January 6, 2017. Santiago, a 26-year-old former National Guard soldier, opened fire on travelers inside the baggage-claim area of Terminal 2. Five people were killed, six others suffered gunshot wounds, and dozens more were injured during the panic and evacuation that followed.
The attack began shortly before 1:00 p.m., when the terminal was crowded with arriving passengers collecting their luggage. Many of the people in the area were vacationers preparing to board cruise ships departing from nearby Port Everglades. Santiago deliberately traveled to Florida with a semiautomatic handgun and ammunition packed inside a locked container in his checked baggage. After retrieving the container, he entered an airport restroom, loaded the weapon and emerged into the public baggage-claim area.
Background of Esteban Santiago
Esteban Santiago-Ruiz was born on March 16, 1990, in Union City, New Jersey. His family moved to Puerto Rico when he was young, and he spent much of his childhood in Peñuelas. Santiago joined the Puerto Rico National Guard in December 2007 and later served as a combat engineer during a deployment to Iraq from April 2010 until February 2011.
After returning from Iraq, Santiago continued serving in the National Guard. He later moved to Alaska and joined the Alaska Army National Guard. His military career ended in August 2016, when he received a general discharge for unsatisfactory performance. Family members said his behavior and mental health had deteriorated after his military service, although investigators never established that his deployment alone caused the airport attack.
Santiago had also experienced legal and personal difficulties before the shooting. Anchorage police arrested him in January 2016 after an incident involving his girlfriend. Authorities alleged that he broke through a door, assaulted her and attempted to strangle her. The case was handled through a deferred prosecution arrangement.
Warnings Before the Attack
On November 7, 2016, Santiago voluntarily entered the FBI field office in Anchorage, Alaska. He made disturbing statements that the government was controlling his mind and forcing him to watch material connected to the Islamic State. He also reported hearing voices encouraging him to commit violent acts. FBI personnel found his behavior sufficiently troubling that they contacted local police.
Anchorage officers took Santiago into protective custody and transported him to a medical facility for a mental-health evaluation. Police temporarily seized his Walther PPS 9mm semiautomatic pistol. Investigators found no evidence that Santiago had committed a federal crime or maintained an operational connection to a terrorist organization. Because he had not been legally prohibited from possessing a firearm, Anchorage police returned the pistol to him in December 2016. It was the same weapon he later used at the airport.
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