Police say the woman shot by police after firing a pistol inside a terminal at Dallas Love Field Airport is a former bank robber.
Dallas Police Department Chief Eddie Garcia said the incident happened after 37-year-old Portia Odufwa was dropped off near a Southwest Airlines ticket counter around 11:00 am on Monday morning. ..
He told reporters that the suspect went to the bathroom, where he changed his clothes and came back. Terminal police officers saw her pull out her pistol and fired into the air, "aiming at the ceiling."
Police say police officers "engaged" the suspect and she was shot dead in her "lower limbs." She was detained and then taken to the hospital in an unknown state.
According to authorities, no one was injured in the incident.
Court records indicate that Portia Odufuwa of the same age was accused of a 2019 bank robbery in Wylie, Texas, but the charges were later withdrawn, according to FOX4.
Oduwufa was accused of giving a bank clerk a note asking for money, the news channel at the time reported. The agency reported that the judge had ordered her to take her proficiency test two weeks before her case against her was dismissed.
Dallas Love Field is Southwest Airlines' hub airport, located approximately 6 miles northwest of downtown Dallas.
Max Geron, police chief in Rockwall, Texas, was at the airport as a passenger and took him to Twitter to confirm the shooting.
"After the apparent shooting, I evacuated from Lovefield. My family is safe. The TSA did a great job," he tweeted.
Geron told NBC5 that he and his family were guarding at the airport when he heard the shooting.
He said the shot came from near the baggage or ticket counter and was dealt with by law enforcement, so the TSA agent quickly moved the passengers to a safe place.
The police chief said the TSA had "fallen the shooter" and evacuated from the airport terminal to an outdoor location.
A ground stop was set up at the airport, with all the landing planes held in the apron and not accessible by taxi to the gate. Inbound flights to the airport have also been temporarily suspended.
Passengers posted a video of the scene inside the airport on Twitter.
The TSA tweeted that all passengers were evacuated from the airport and needed to be rescreened, telling travelers that "the safety of the traveler&staff is important&patiently. Please know. "
