Two months before allegedly killing five and wounding eight in the Fort Lauderdale airport, Esteban Santiago walked into an FBI office in Anchorage, Alaska with a loaded handgun magazine appearing “agitated” and reporting “terroristic thoughts,” officials told reporters. He insisted that the CIA was forcing him to watch ISIS videos, the officials added.
The FBI passed him to local authorities, who took him to a mental health facility. The police took custody of his handgun, which was in his vehicle.
Four days later, he was freed. The police gave him his gun back.
Santiago now joins a list of people — including Orlando nightclub shooter Omar Mateen, alleged Manhattan bomber Ahmad Rahami and Boston marathon bombing planner Tamerlan Tsarnaev — whose troublesome behavior brought them to the attention of the FBI before they committed violent acts.
That fact pattern has renewed calls from experts who believe the FBI needs to extend some greater level of scrutiny to people who appear threatening but whose actions do not merit a traditional criminal investigation.
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