Crime & Safety

LAX Shooting Suspect Released Into Federal Custody

The Sun Valley suspect that allegedly shot one TSA officer dead is released from the hospital.

By City News Service

The Sun Valley man suspected of carrying out a shooting spree inside Terminal 3 at Los Angeles International Airport, killing a security agent and wounding two others, was in federal custody Tuesday following his release from Ronald Reagan UCLA Medical Center.

A spokeswoman for the U.S. Marshals Service told City News Service that Paul Anthony Ciancia was in federal custody, but she declined to provide specifics about where he was being held.

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Officials at Ronald Reagan UCLA Medical Center, where Ciancia was being treated since being shot by police inside the terminal, said their final patient from the hospital shooting was released Monday -- although the hospital did not identify the patient by name.

Ciancia, 23, has already been charged with murder by federal prosecutors for the death of Transportation Security Administration Officer Gerardo Hernandez, who was gunned down in a lower level of Terminal 3 while he was checking passengers' identifications and boarding materials.

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Federal investigators said Ciancia walked into the terminal around 9:20 a.m. Nov. 1, pulled a semi-automatic weapon out of a duffel bag and began shooting. He allegedly shot Hernandez -- a 39-year-old father of two -- and began walking up some stairs, but turned back and shot Hernandez again when he realized the TSA agent was still alive, federal officials said.

Ciancia allegedly continued shooting his way through the screening area and into the terminal, apparently targeting TSA agents. He was eventually shot four times by police, including once in the head, officials said.

Thom Mrozek, spokesman for the U.S. Attorney's Office, said no court appearances for Ciancia have been scheduled.


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