Anchorage police investigated Fort Lauderdale airport shooting suspect

ANCHORAGE, Alaska — Authorities in Alaska who last year referred for mental evaluation the man accused in the Fort Lauderdale airport shooting said Saturday he was allowed to retrieve his gun in early December.

Esteban Santiago, who police say killed five people and wounded six others Friday in the shooting at Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport, could not be denied his weapon because he was not declared "adjudicated mentally ill," Alaska U.S. Attorney Karen Loeffler said during a press conference. Federal law prohibits the mentally ill from possessing weapons, but only if they've been formally declared adjudicated.

Santiago approached the FBI office in Anchorage in what authorities described as a walk-in complaint to say he was "having terroristic thoughts," according to descriptions of the incident by authorities at the time.

"During the interview, Mr. Santiago appeared agitated and incoherent, and made disjointed statements," FBI Anchorage Field Office Special Agent in Charge Martin Ritzman said.  "Although he stated he did not wish to harm anyone, as a result of his erratic behavior, our Joint Terrorism Task Force special agents contacted local authorities, who took custody of Santiago and transported him to a local medical facility for evaluation."

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Santiago had a loaded magazine cartridge with him at the time, although he did not bring a weapon with him into the FBI office, Anchorage Police Chief Christopher Tolley said . Santiago also had his newborn baby in the car. Ritzman said Santiago's girlfriend was contacted and she later picked up the baby.

Anchorage police officers took Santiago to the mental health clinic. He was admitted and later released.

The FBI closed its assessment of Santiago after conducting database reviews and interagency checks, Ritzman said. Santiago was not added to a no-fly list.

"I want to be clear. During our investigation, we found no known ties to terrorism. He had broken no laws when he came into our office making disjointed comments about mind control," Ritzman said.

Anchorage police responded to a series of calls about Santiago last year, Tolley said. He was arrested and charged with criminal mischief after police received a call about a physical disturbance in January. He was ordered as a condition of his release to stay away from his girlfriend and the apartment they lived in, but was arrested again in February when police found him there during a routine check, Tolley said.

In March, police received another physical disturbance call, but officers "were not able to establish probable cause for an arrest" of Santiago, Tolley said.

Police received another domestic violence call on Oct. 15 concerning Santiago, but officers were told by a municipal prosecutor not to arrest him, Tolley said. On Oct. 21, police received a call accusing Santiago of strangulation, but officers could not establish probable cause for an arrest, Tolley said.

Tolley did not identify who called police about Santiago or who accused him. Court records show Santiago's girlfriend was the victim in the January incident.

Local, state and federal authorities in Alaska have executed two search warrants for residences where Santiago has stayed, Ritzman said. There is no threat to the local community, he said.

"While we are early in this investigation, there is currently no indication Mr. Santiago was working with any other individuals when he planned and carried out yesterday’s attack," Ritzman said.

Authorities in Florida investigating the shooting said Saturday they have not ruled out a terrorism motive. Santiago traveled from Anchorage to Fort Lauderdale to carry out the shooting, FBI officials said.

Ritzman said authorities could not comment on what mental-health facility released Santiago or what his diagnosis was prior to the airport shootings. Tolley said he had not confirmed that the weapon used in the airport shooting Friday was the same weapon retrieved by authorities after Santiago walked into the FBI office in November, but it was believed to be the same gun.

Residents at the small apartment complex where Santiago lived said Saturday they didn't know him. He lived in a small half unit behind the complex. A mailbox listed his name, his girlfriend's name and another name.

Eric Brown was leaving his unit in the complex after warming up his car for 15 minutes in the sub zero temperatures, just after the sun came up at about 10 a.m. Saturday. Brown said he didn’t know Santiago, and had never met his girlfriend. He said the small complex is made of people who mostly keep to themselves.

“We all work odd hours here, and don’t see much of each other,” Brown said.

Alaska National Guard officials released more details Saturday of Santiago's service. He joined the Puerto Rico National Guard on Dec. 14, 2007. He was deployed to Iraq from April 23, 2010 to Feb. 19, 2011.

He later was in the Army Reserves prior to joining the Alaska Army National Guard on Nov. 21, 2014. He served as a combat engineer and received a general discharge as a Private First Class from the Alaska guard on Aug. 16 for unsatisfactory performance.

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