WARNING GRAPHIC CONTENT: First photo of shot TSA killer
This is the bloodied face of a madman, moments after his rampage through Los Angeles International Airport.
A blood-drenched Paul Ciancia lay stunned on the floor of LAX, critically wounded after heroic airport cops blasted him in the face to halt his deadly march Friday through Terminal 3 that left one Transportation Security Administration agent dead and six other people wounded.
The investigation into Ciancia’s motives was hampered Saturday by his injuries — he remained *unresponsive Saturday night, officials said.
But a one-page manifesto he was carrying offered some clues, revealing a deep distrust of the federal government and a promise to “instill fear in your traitorous minds,” said one official, quoting from the manifesto.
Ciancia, 23, appears to hate *former Homeland Security chief Janet Napolitano, whom he referred to as a “bull d—” in his handwritten screed,
according to the Southern Poverty Law Center.
“FU Janet Napolitano,” Ciancia scrawled, according to the report.
He also wrote that he “wants to kill TSA and pigs,” mentions the Federal Reserve and said that airport searches violate his rights.
Although the note contains references to the “New World Order,” Ciancia was not known to be a member of any radical groups, according to the law center, which tracks hate groups.
The “New World Order” is a reference to a conspiracy theory claiming that American freedoms are being sabotaged by secret elites seeking a “one-world government,” according to the law center.
The shocking photo obtained by The Post shows the critically injured Ciancia, hands cuffed behind his slim body, staring off into space, next to a thick, bright pool of his own blood as medical personnel treat his mangled face.
The shot knocked out teeth and split his tongue, sources told The Post. Ciancia, a Pennsville, NJ, native, was being treated at UCLA Medical Center.
The terror began when Ciancia walked into a public area of the busy airport at 9:20 a.m. Pacific time on Friday, carrying a Smith & Wesson .233-caliber semiautomatic assault rifle in a bag, along with five extra magazines for a total of 150 rounds of ammunition, officials said.
He allegedly whipped out the weapon and began stalking through the terminal, making eye contact with air travelers who were soon fleeing in panic as Ciancia began firing away at TSA employees.
One witness said Ciancia stopped, looked at him and said, “TSA?” When the man shook his head no, Ciancia moved on.
TSA Agent Gerardo Hernandez, 39, a married father of two, was killed in the attack.
After blasting Hernandez, Ciancia walked away and started taking an escalator up to the next floor, FBI Special Agent in Charge David Bowdich told reporters.
Ciancia turned, saw Hernandez was still moving, then returned to fire into him again, Bowdich said.
Hernandez is the first TSA *officer to die in the line of duty in the agency’s 12-year history.
His family back in New Jersey became worried when Ciancia sent a text to his younger brother Friday indicating he wanted to end his life, according to reports.
They asked Pennsville cops to have officers in LA check on Ciancia, but he wasn’t home when they reached his apartment. Roommates who had recently seen him said Ciancia seemed fine.
Ciancia, one of three kids whose mother died in 2009, had no mental-health issues, his devastated family told Pennsville cops, adding they had no idea he had the weaponry he carried into LAX.
The devastated family declined to speak to reporters Saturday.
The shooting shut down LAX for hours, canceling hundreds of flights throughout the nation and leaving some travelers stranded. The airport reopened Saturday.
Additional reporting by Helen Kumari and Erin Calabrese
