Miami airline passenger never claimed bomb, witnesses say News
Miami airline passenger never claimed bomb, witnesses say

[JURIST] Eyewitness reports are showing that Rigoberto Alpizar [Wikipedia profile], who was shot and killed onboard a plane [MSNBC report] at the Miami International Airport Wednesday, never claimed to have a bomb [TIME report]. Federal officials say they opened fire after Alpizar disobeyed their warnings to stop, reached into his backpack, and said he had a bomb. Passengers, however, who never perceived Alpizar as a threat, are now saying that were more afraid of air marshals during the incident than the reportedly mentally unstable Alpizar. Parallels are being drawn this US shooting and that of Jean Charles de Menezes [BBC report], the Brazilian man mistakenly shot by London police [JURIST report] at a London subway station days after the London bombings [JURIST news archive] last July. In the de Menezes case, it was announced Friday that officers involved in the shooting could face charges [BBC report]. The Independent Police Complaints Commission has been investigating the incident [JURIST report] and will "likely" forward its final report to the Crown Prosecution Service for consideration. AP has more.