Brother of airport shooting suspect says US gov’t failed him

PENUELAS, Puerto Rico (AP) – The brother of a man accused of shooting five people to death at a Florida airport is questioning why his brother was allowed to keep his gun after U.S. authorities knew he’d become increasingly paranoid and was hearing voices.

After serving in the National Guard in Iraq, Bryan Santiago says his 26-year-old brother, Esteban Santiago, had trouble controlling his anger and told him that he felt he was being chased and being controlled by the CIA through secret online messages.

Speaking outside his family home in Puerto Rice, Bryan Santiago tells The Associated Press that his brother had gone to an FBI field office in November and told agents about his paranoid thoughts. Esteban was evaluated for four days, but then released without any follow-up medication or therapy.

Bryan Santiago calls it a failure by the FBI, saying “We’re not talking about someone who emerged from anonymity to do something like this.”

The FBI office in Alaska has declined to comment ahead of a news conference planned for today.