Los Angeles- In a ceremony that took place at the Ronald F. Deaton Auditorium, six Los Angeles Airport Police Officers were recognized for outstanding work on the United States v. Paul Anthony Ciancia, a federal case involving the November 1, 2013, Terminal 3 shooting at Los Angeles International Airport (LAX), that took the life of Transportation Security Administration (TSA) employee Gerardo Hernandez and severely wounded three others.
Airport Police Officers David Lalicker, Brian Lopez, Rob Pedregon, Raymond Woods, Daniel Yu and Sergeant Steve Zouzounis were honored today at the U.S. Attorney’s annual Law Enforcement Awards Ceremony. The annual event is the U.S. Attorney’s opportunity to recognize federal and local law enforcement agents and officers for their distinguished service. The six Airport Police Officers actions were instrumental in the conviction of Ciancia who is serving a life sentence without the possibility of parole.
“The events of November 1, 2013 will forever be tied to the history of LAX and the actions of these six officers serve as testimony of the dedication and courage of the men and women of the Airport Police,” said Chief of Airport Police David Maggard.
In addition to its nearly 550 sworn officers, the Los Angeles Airport Police Division includes 430 security officers and nearly 200 civilian professional staff. As the largest aviation law enforcement agency in the nation, the Airport Police patrols and secures the third busiest commercial airport in the U.S, Los Angeles International Airport (LAX), as well as LA/Ontario International (ONT), and Van Nuys (VNY) airports.