atlanta — Police arrested a man at the crowded Atlanta airport on Monday after receiving a tip from his family that he was planning to shoot up the place, and found an assault rifle and ammunition in his truck outside, the Atlanta police chief said.
Police Chief Darren Scherbaum said during a press conference that Billy Joe Cagle, from Cartersville, Georgia, described his plan to bomb the busiest airport in the world via a live broadcast on social media.
“Mr. Cagle’s family alerted the Cartersville Police Department that he was broadcasting on social media that he was headed to the Atlanta airport, in their words, to be shot, and the family stated that he had an assault rifle in his possession,” Scherbaum said, describing Cagle as a convicted felon.
Cagle, 49, arrived at Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport in a Chevrolet pickup truck parked just outside the airport terminal doors. When police went to that vehicle, they found an AR-15-style rifle containing 27 rounds of ammunition, Scherbaum said.
“We are here today to share with you a success, not a tragedy, because a family saw something and said something,” the president said.
Cagle “had the intent to harm as many people as possible,” said Cartersville Police Capt. Greg Sparacio, whose department received the initial tip from family members.
During the press conference, police showed surveillance video showing Cagle arriving at the airport and body camera video showing his arrest.
A Chevrolet flatbed pickup truck was seen pulling up to the curb at the airport terminal around 9:30 a.m., and a man identified by police as Cagle was then seen entering the airport a few minutes later. Scherbaum said he went to the TSA security checkpoint and had a “strong interest in this area.”
Body camera footage shows Atlanta police officers, who had a photo of Cagle provided by his family on their phones, approach him and begin asking him questions before taking him into custody. When they took him to the ground and put handcuffs on him, Cagle could be heard screaming.
Cagle is charged with making terroristic threats, criminal attempt to commit aggravated assault, possession of a firearm during the commission of a felony and possession of a firearm by a felon, Scherbaum said.
Scherbaum said Cagle is a convicted felon, and Atlanta police will work with federal authorities to determine how he obtained the weapon “which he was unable to legally possess.”
Mayor Andre Dickens said, “We thank God” that the tragedy was averted.
“We thank God, good information, good information and good people for avoiding this crisis,” the city’s mayor said.
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