A federal grand jury has served suspected Fort Lauderdale airport shooter Esteban Santiago with a 22-count indictment. Santiago is being charged with 11 counts of causing death or bodily harm and six counts of using a firearm during a crime of violence.
The New York Times noted that of those 22 counts, none were terrorism-related. This may or may not come as a huge surprise, as authorities relayed Santiago’s claim that he’d been forced to watch ISIS videos. Santiago had also reportedly been hearing voices when he went to the FBI last year in Anchorage to report his supposed brainwashing.
Despite the announcement of charges, authorities have not provided any new details surrounding the shooting that left five people dead in Fort Lauderdale. But the agency did provide the names of those who died during the shooting.
In addition, David Weinstein, former chief of the counter-terrorism section at the U.S. attorney’s office, said the indictments lay the groundwork for the case: “They have made the necessary allegations to seek the death penalty.” However, the Justice Department has not definitively announced whether it will seek the death penalty. Authorities are still reportedly trying to determine the reason for Santiago’s shooting, which has been complicated by his claims that he was inspired by ISIS but also forced to watch the videos.
(Via ABC News, The New York Times & Miami Herald)