Posted on 12/07/2005 5:03:30 PM PST by NCjim
MIAMI — An agitated passenger who claimed to have a bomb in his backpack was shot and killed by a federal air marshal Wednesday after he bolted frantically from a jetliner that was boarding for take off, officials said. No bomb was found.
It was the first time since the Sept. 11 attacks that an air marshal had shot at anyone, Homeland Security Department spokesman Brian Doyle said. Another federal official said there was no apparent link to terrorism.
The passenger, identified as Rigoberto Alpizar, a 44-year-old U.S. citizen, was gunned down on a jetway just before the American Airlines plane was about to leave for Orlando, near his home in Maitland.
According to a witness, the man frantically ran down the aisle of the Boeing 757, flailing his arms, while his wife tried to explain that he was mentally ill and had not taken his medication.
The passenger indicated there was a bomb in his bag and was confronted by air marshals but ran off the aircraft, Doyle said. The marshals went after him and ordered him to get down on the ground, but he did not comply and was shot when he apparently reached into the bag, Doyle said.
Flight 924, which originated in Quito, Ecuador, had arrived in Miami just after noon, and the shooting occurred shortly after 2 p.m. as the plane was about to take off for Orlando with the man and 119 other passengers and crew, American spokesman Tim Wagner said. Alpizar had arrived in Miami earlier in the day from Ecuador, authorities said.
After the shooting, investigators spread passengers' bags on the tarmac and let dogs sniff them for explosives, and bomb squad members blew up at least two bags.
(Excerpt) Read more at foxnews.com ...
Bet that ruined somebody's trip...
Do Democrats think Miami air marshals lied?
This is a rundown of what happened at the Miami Airport on Wednesday:
A man aboard an American Airlines flight from Colombia:
1. Claimed he had a bomb.
2. Made threatening statements and exhibited erratic behavior.
3. Refused to comply with numerous and repeated demands to stop.
Authorities determined that:
1. The man posed a mortal threat to those around him.
2. The man refused to comply with their demands to disarm.
As a result, the man was shot and killed. This lessened and perhaps ended the threat against those on the plane. Future threats from others may have also been discouraged.
As it turned out, the man didn’t have a bomb, but those whose job it is to know believed that he could have. They judged that the man’s statements and actions posed too great a threat to take a chance – especially in a post-9/11 world. The air marshals launched a pre-emptive strike against a threat based on the best information available.
Howard Dean, Harry Reid and Nancy Pelosi have not yet issued statements.
And that right there, is what got him ventilated. No doubt we'll be hearing from the MSM all about how the mean 'ol cops gunned down an unarmed mentally-ill man.
MSM heck, we're already hearing it from a few fellow FReepers....
I was on a plane - KLM - leaving Tbilisi to Amsterdam last spring when a man just across the aisle from us began escalating and eventually became fairly violent. He was surrounded by at least 4 very burly and strong men who seemed to appear from nowhere. They stayed with him the entire time and never left his side. When we arrived in Amsterdam he was handcuffed and removed from the plane first.
The good news is I just got of the phone with my New York, Jewish, always voting demorat friend who said "Good, They blew the crap out of that idiot!" LOL!
Times are changing, slowly but still changing none the less.
Excellent analogy. I'd send that on to Rush and the likes.
Allow me to play Devil's Advocate here.
Let's assume that this was an aircraft chattered by MoveOn. org and Dean, Reid and Nancy Pelosi were aboard. Do you not believe that, in such a case, that this man's human rights required that he be given the benefit of the doubt?
Of course, they would try to reason with the man, and find what in his past led him to such evil acts. Perhaps offer a cup of tea, and a hug. The end result? BOOM.
"As it turned out, the man didn’t have a bomb, but those whose job it is to know believed that he could have. They judged that the man’s statements and actions posed too great a threat to take a chance – especially in a post-9/11 world. The air marshals launched a pre-emptive strike against a threat based on the best information available. "
Exactly.
I think this is a horrible situation - certainly nothing to poke fun at. I've seen several Freepers make comments on how ugly the wife is, etc., after this woman witnessed her mentally ill husband get blown away.
This is a tragic mistake that, given how it occurred, had no other outcome in a post-9/11 world. I wish some Freepers would take the high road, rather than making fun of the now-widowed wife's appearance.
Air marshals shouldn't be blamed for doing their job.
In the old days, before good drugs, these nuts would have been warehoused someplace out of site. If all the loons stopped taking the medication today, it would be like a reverse Rapture. "Where'd all the weirdos come from?"
Was Hillary on the plane?
"This is a tragic mistake"
I don't think it's a mistake at all. The air marshalls did exactly what they were supposed to do. The guy was claiming he had a bomb in his backpack, and then made a move towards his backpack. The alternative would be to wait and see if he had a bomb, and if he did, hundreds of people would have been killed or wounded. And, by the way, I don't know or care what his wife looks like or how he failed to take his medication. If you're on an airplane and you say you have a bomb, you also have a death wish which is going to be granted.
Suicide by cop?
Bottom line is that members of our society are no longer allowed the same "luxuries" as they had pre 9/11.
Not realizing what your current civilization/ society thinks is a threat can be deadly. It's always been that way.
"This is a tragic mistake "
For whom?
Seriously, this will probably turn out to have been a terrible mistake, but the Marshall was in the right. He's the one I feel for, his career is over...
Point me in their direction...
This thread, Sir...
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1536037/posts
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.