FROM NBC NEWS: Authorities in Atlanta said they averted a tragedy Monday after a man’s family told police that he was headed to the city’s airport to “shoot it up.”
Police found an AR-15 assault rifle with 27 rounds of ammunition in the man’s truck, which was parked outside Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport, Police Chief Darin Schierbaum said.
Billy Cagle, 49, was arrested on suspicion of making terroristic threats, criminal attempt to commit aggravated assault and firearms charges, police said.
“There were 27 rounds that could have been fired from this weapon inside the airport,” Schierbaum told reporters.
Schierbaum said investigators are seeking a motive and revealed that the suspect’s family had called police in Cartersville, to tell them Cagle was livestreaming his plans on social media.
“He was headed to the airport, in their words, ‘to shoot it up,’ and the family stated that he was in possession of an assault rifle,” Schierbaum said. “What we didn’t know is that Mr. Cagle had already arrived at the airport.”
In security video footage from the day, Cagle is seen entering the at 9:29 a.m., Schierbaum said. Police were notified about his intentions 11 minutes later. They then alerted authorities in Atlanta.
In the footage, he appeared “very interested” in the Transportation Security Administration check-in area, Schierbaum said.
Officers had located Cagle by 9:54 a.m. as seen in the footage. He was unarmed, but police searched his vehicle and found the assault rifle with 27 rounds.
According to officials, Cagle has a history of “mental challenges.”
In response to the incident, Atlanta Mayor Andre Dickens said, “‘See something, say something’ did work.”
“We are standing here talking about a tragedy averted, versus us standing here telling you about 27-plus lives that were lost or injured at the world’s busiest airport,” he added.
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