An investigation is under way today into the fatal shooting by air marshals of a man allegedly claiming to have a bomb on an aircraft at Miami International Airport.
Federal officials said the 44-year-old American made threats and indicated he had a bomb in his bag as he was boarding a flight that had arrived from the Colombian city of Medellin and was heading to Orlando, Florida.
Rigoberto Alpizar
The man, who arrived in Miami from Quito, Ecuador, was identified
as Florida resident Rigoberto Alpizar. Federal officials said they could not comment on the allegation that the suspect might have been mentally ill.
Many details of the shooting remain confused, but officials in Washington said the man tried to flee, ignored an order to put his bag on the ground and was shot on the passenger gangway.
Police in Miami gave a sketchier account. They said the incident began on the plane but were not specific on precisely where the shooting occurred.
"The passenger then reached into his carry-on bag, at which point, consistent with air marshal training, the air marshals took the appropriate actions. Shots were fired as the team attempted to subdue the subject," said a Department of Homeland Security spokesman.
The shooting triggered a scramble by air marshals to guard airports across the United States against possible attacks.
But Jim Bauer, special agent in charge of the federal air marshals' Miami office, said investigators found no immediate evidence of a "nexus to terrorism" and no sign of a bomb. "There were no explosives involved, that we're aware of at least, on this plane," Mr Bauer said.
A woman who said she was an witness told NBC television's Miami affiliate that the man's wife had screamed "My husband, my husband," and said he had bipolar disorder and needed medication.
"Her husband ran through the aisle frantically. She ran after him and all of a sudden there were four or five shots," passenger Mary Gardner told the station.
The US air marshals service said it was the first time one of them had fired on a passenger since the programme was beefed up after September 11th.