Machete-Wielding Man Shot at New Orleans Airport Has Died
Published at
Baloncici/iStock/Thinkstock(NEW ORLEANS) — A man who was shot at by a law enforcement officer at a New Orleans airport on Friday night after he allegedly attacked three TSA officers, has died, ABC News has confirmed.
Jefferson Parish Sheriff Newell Normand held a press conference on Friday night, saying that a taxi driver named Richard White, 63, entered Louis Armstrong New Orleans International Airport, walked down the security line and, when challenged by a Transportation Security Administration agent, sprayed the agent with wasp spray that he had concealed in a bag.
Upon proceeding past that point, he encountered two more agents, spraying a male agent in the face and threatening a female agent with a machete that he had hidden in his pants. Shortly thereafter, a law enforcement officer shot White three times — once in the chest, once in the face and once in the thigh.
The female TSA agent was grazed in the arm by a bullet fired by the law enforcement officer.
World News Videos | US News Videos
Authorities searched a bag the suspect dropped in the security area and found several Molotov cockails, Jefferson Parish Sheriff Newell Normand said at a press conference Saturday. A search of his abandoned car revealed smoke bombs and chemical tanks, Normand said.
What the suspect intended to do with the tanks and what triggered the attack remained unknown, the sheriff said. Police said they know of no connection between the suspect and anyone else at the airport and did not believe he was a traveler.
White was taken to a nearby hospital where he underwent surgery, police said. By late afternoon Saturday, White had died.
New Orleans Mayor Mitch Landrieu offered his thoughts to those injured at the airport, praising officials for the quick response.
Landrieu said that Concourse B, where the incident occurred, is expected to reopen Saturday. In the meantime, the airport said that Concourses C and D remained operational.
World News Videos | US News Videos
Follow @ABCNewsRadio
Copyright © 2015, ABC Radio. All rights reserved.