Man shot dead at Florida airport
The flight originated in Medellin
A man who claimed to have a bomb on board an American Airlines plane in Miami
has
been shot dead by US air marshals, officials say.
Rigoberto Alpizar, a 44-year-old US citizen, was killed in the air bridge after
running out
of the plane pursued by marshals who had broken their cover.

No bomb was found on Mr Alpizar whose wife had tried to explain he had a mental
illness,
one witness said.

It was the first time since 9/11 that air marshals had shot at a passenger.


I did hear the lady say her husband was bi-polar and had not had his medication
Mary Gardner
passenger
The US dramatically increased the number of air marshals on flights after the
2001
attacks.

Local police and federal officers are investigating the incident, but officials
say so far there
is no hint of any links to terrorism.

However, as a precaution, federal air marshals were deployed in airports across
the
country.

'Threatening words'

Mr Alpizar had arrived in Miami, Florida, from Ecuador and was boarding a flight
to
Orlando at about 1410 local time (1910 GMT).


Carrying a backpack and travelling with a woman apparently his wife, he had
cleared
customs and was boarding the Orlando flight, which had originated in Medellin,
Colombia.

"At some point, he uttered threatening words that included a sentence to the
effect that he
had a bomb," said Miami Federal Air Marshals official James Bauer.

"There were federal air marshals on board the aircraft. They came out of their
cover,
confronted him, and he remained noncompliant with their instructions.

"As he was attempting to evade them, his actions caused the FAMs to fire shots,
and in
fact he is deceased."

Homeland Security Department spokeswoman Joanna Gonzalez said Mr Alpizar had
fled
from the aircraft through the air bridge going toward the terminal.

"At that point, he appeared to be reaching into his carry-on bag... the air
marshals took
the appropriate action and that's when the shots were fired," she added.

'Hysteria'

Mary Gardner, a fellow passenger, told local television that the man had run
frantically
down the aisle of the Boeing 757 screaming while his wife tried to explain he
was ill.

"I did hear the lady say her husband was bi-polar and had not had his
medication," she
said.

"I saw the woman... she was hysterical."

Neighbours of Mr Alpizar in Maitland, Florida, remembered him as a "very quiet
guy".

He had, relatives said, been married to his wife Anne Buechner for about 22
years.

Television images showed police and emergency response officers surrounding the
plane
after the incident.

Investigators spread passengers' bags on the tarmac as sniffer dogs checked them
for
explosives. The airport later resumed normal operations.

Story from BBC NEWS:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/pr/fr/-/2/hi/americas/4508432.stm

Published: 2005/12/08 05:05:20 GMT

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