Lauderdale Airport Gunman Has Hearing On His Mental Health
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MIAMI (CBSMiami) - The man accused of going on a deadly shooting rampage inside Ft. Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport is due back in court on Friday.
The hearing concerns 26-year-old Esteban Santiago's mental health issues. The focus will be on how he is doing on medication for schizophrenia and schizoaffective disorder. Santiago's lawyers say he is competent to stand trial.
Santiago is accused of killing five people and injuring six others on January 6th in a baggage claim area of Terminal 2.
A Grand Jury indicted the 26-year-old on 22 counts; eleven counts of performing an act of violence against a person at an airport serving international civil aviation that caused death or serious bodily injury, six counts of use and discharge of a firearm during and in relation to a crime of violence and five counts of causing the death of a person through the use of a firearm.
The FBI says that after Santiago flew from Anchorage to Fort Lauderdale, he took a 9mm handgun out of a checked gun box, loaded it in a bathroom and emerged firing.
He reportedly confessed to the shooting during questioning. Santiago allegedly said he had been in Jihadist chat rooms and had been in contact with the dark web and deep net. He reportedly told his interrogators that he was in contact with ISIL and these like-minded individuals were all planning attacks.
Last November, Santiago walked into an FBI field office in Alaska and said that he was hearing voices, the U.S. government was controlling his mind and they were forcing him to watch Islamic State group videos
His medical records show he spent several days at a psychiatric facility in Anchorage. The records show he was only given anti-anxiety medication and melatonin. No psychiatric medication was prescribed.
During his arraignment, Santiago formally entered a plea of not guilty.
He could face the death penalty if convicted.
(© Copyright 2017 CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. The Associated Press contributed to this report.)
