Omar Mateen
Omar Mateen | |
---|---|
A driver's license photo of Mateen | |
Born |
Omar Mir Seddique November 16, 1986 New Hyde Park, New York, U.S. |
Died |
June 12, 2016 29) Orlando, Florida, U.S. | (aged
Cause of death | Eight gunshot wounds by police officers |
Citizenship | United States |
Occupation | Security guard |
Known for | Perpetrator of the 2016 Orlando nightclub shooting |
Parent(s) | Mir Seddique Mateen (father) |
Killings | |
Date |
June 12, 2016 c. 2:00 a.m. – c. 5:00 a.m. |
Location(s) | Orlando, Florida, United States |
Target(s) | Patrons of Pulse gay nightclub |
Killed | 49 |
Injured | 53 |
Weapons |
SIG Sauer MCX semi-automatic rifle 9mm Glock 17 semi-automatic pistol |
Omar Mir Seddique Mateen (November 16, 1986 – June 12, 2016) was an American mass murderer who killed 49 people and wounded 53 others in a mass shooting at the Pulse gay nightclub in Orlando, Florida, on June 12, 2016, before he was killed in a shootout with the local police. It was both the deadliest shooting by a single shooter and the deadliest act of violence against LGBT people in United States history.
Prior to the shooting, he had been investigated for connections to terrorism by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) in 2013 and 2014. During that period, he was placed on the Terrorist Screening Database, but subsequently removed.[1] In a call to 9-1-1 during the shooting, Mateen identified himself as "Mujahideen", "Islamic Soldier", and "Soldier of God";[2][3] and pledged his allegiance multiple times to the Sunni militant jihadist group Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL).[4] He said the shooting was "triggered" by an airstrike in Iraq that killed Abu Wahib, an ISIL commander, weeks before.[5]
Early life
Mateen was born Omar Mir Seddique[6] on November 16, 1986,[7] in New Hyde Park, New York, to Afghan parents. His father, Mir Seddique Mateen, is a Pashtun[8] who emigrated in the 1980s.[9][10][11] After being raised in New York for a few years, he moved with his family to Port St. Lucie in 1991.[8] His family was described as being moderate Muslims and "an all-American family".[12]
Behavior in school
At a young age, Mateen displayed an interest in violence, the Associated Press and The Washington Post reported. For his elementary and middle school education, he attended classes in St. Lucie County, Florida. While at Mariposa Elementary School, a third grade teacher wrote that Mateen was "very active ... constantly moving, verbally abusive, rude, aggressive ... much talk about violence & sex ... hands all over the place – on other children, in his mouth". In the seventh grade, Mateen was moved to a separate class with the purpose of avoiding "conflicts with other students" and suffered from poor scholarly performance due to "many instances of behavioral problems".[13]
A classmate at Mariposa said that Mateen was a bully, disrespectful to girls and acted like he was better than his classmates. Another classmate reported that Mateen was bullied at school because of his weight and his Afghan heritage. His parents were described as "dismissive" of his poor behavior while his father "had a reputation for being disrespectful of female teachers and dismissive of complaints about his son".[12] In 1999, while Mateen was in the eighth grade, his teacher sent a letter sent to his father regarding an "attitude and inability to show self-control".[13]
Mateen began his secondary education at Martin County High School in 2000, and at the age of 14 was expelled after being in a fight in math class, where he was briefly arrested without being handcuffed and charged with battery and disrupting school, though the charges were later dropped.[14][15] While a sophomore attending Spectrum, an alternative high school for those who have issues with their behavior, classmates told The Washington Post that Mateen cheered in support of the hijackers during the September 11 attacks and that he stated that Osama bin Laden was his uncle who taught him how to shoot AK-47s, all of this prior to the knowledge of bin Laden being the mastermind of the attacks.[12][13][16] After his outburst, Mateen's father arrived at the school to pick him up and slapped him in the face, with Mateen later being suspended for five days after the incident.[12][13] Soon after the September 11 attacks, repeatedly "he shocked other students on his school bus by imitating an exploding plane", reported The New York Times.[17]
A retired dean of Martin County High School, Dan Alley, said that they "tried to counsel him and show him the error of his ways, but it never had the effect that we were hoping for," and that his father "would not back up the school, and he would always take his son's side".[13] Mateen was later sent to St. Lucie West Centennial High School after getting into a fight with a student.[16][18][19][20][21] By the time Mateen had returned and graduated from Martin County's Stuart Adult Vocational School in 2003, he had been suspended for 48 days for being involved in fights and injuring other students.[8][13]
Post-secondary education and employment
Mateen attended Indian River State College's Criminal Justice Training program and in a questionnaire, he admitted to committing or being involved in a crime that went undetected, but did not provide specific details and later earned an associate of science degree in criminal justice technology from the college in 2006.[8][21][22] He worked in a number of local stores and restaurants while attending school.[8]
In October 2006, Mateen began working as a recruit for the Florida Department of Corrections, being assigned to the Martin Correctional Institution. In a letter explaining his juvenile record as part of his successful application, Mateen explained the incident of when he was arrested at school when he was fourteen. He also wrote that he had experimented with marijuana as a young teenager. Following the Virginia Tech shooting in April 2007, Mateen suggested in a corrections officer training class that he would bring a gun to class. P.H. Skipper, who was the warden at institution, wrote that "in light of the tragic events at Virginia Tech officer Mateen's inquiry about bringing a weapon to class is at best extremely disturbing". Days later on April 27, 2007, Mateen "was involuntarily dismissed" from the program and never became a certified corrections officer.[15][21][23][24]
Mateen then worked for British-based security firm G4S Secure Solutions in Jupiter, Florida, from September 2007 until his death.[14][25][26][27] The company said two screenings of Mateen—one conducted upon hiring and the other in 2013—had raised no red flags.[28] Nonetheless, G4S removed Mateen from his job post at a courthouse because of threats he made towards coworkers, including one threat where he claimed he would have al-Qaeda kill a deputy's family.[29][30] Mateen had claimed that his coworkers and courthouse deputies were making racist comments towards him.[30] Despite this, G4S "kept Mateen as an employee" but moved him "to a kiosk at a gated community in Palm Beach County."[31] They never informed the community or its property management company about why he was transferred there.[30]
Mateen held an active concealed carry permit and an armed security guard license.[32][33] He passed a psychological test and medical exam performed by Dr. Syed Shafeeq Rahman, who had close ties with Mateen's family.[13] It was also noted that Mateen had no criminal record.[34] According to licensing records, he was a proficient shooter who scored in the 98th percentile with a 9mm semiautomatic pistol.[35]
In 2010, he was videotaped while working security for a site related to the BP oil spill.[36][37] Mateen said of those working on the cleanup: "Nobody gives a shit here. Everybody's just, get out to get paid. They're like hoping for more oil to come out and more people to complain so they'll have jobs. They want more disaster to happen." Video of his comments were included in a 2012 documentary, The Big Fix.[38]
After the shooting, a psychologist, who was said to have evaluated and cleared Mateen for his firearms license in 2007, according to the records of the security company G4S, denied ever meeting him or having lived in Florida at the time, and said she had stopped her practice in Florida in January 2006. G4S admitted Mateen's form had a "clerical error", and clarified that he had instead been cleared by Rahman, who was from the same firm that bought the wrongly-named doctor's practice. Rahman had not interviewed Mateen, but evaluated the results of a standard test used in the screening he undertook before being hired.[39]
Personal life
In 2006, Mateen filed a petition for a name change, adding Mateen as his surname to match that of his parents.[6][8]
In April 2009, Mateen married his first wife, an Uzbekistan-born woman whom he met in 2008 through Myspace, a social networking site.[40] They separated after four months and divorced in July 2011.[22][41][42]
Mateen visited Saudi Arabia for an eight-day trip in 2011 and a ten-day trip in 2012. The latter was organized by the Islamic Center at New York University. It included twelve New York City police officers and groups from Columbia and Yale and visited Mecca and Medina.[43][44] Around these times, he went to the United Arab Emirates.[45][46] FBI Director James Comey said Saudi officials helped investigate Mateen's trips.[47] In June 2016, the House Intelligence Committee said that U.S. investigators "are searching for details about the Saudi Arabia trips."[44]
In 2011, Mateen met his second wife on an online dating site, and the two married shortly afterward.[48] She moved into Mateen's Fort Pierce home in November 2012.[21] By September 2013, they were living in a house in Port St. Lucie with Mateen's father and another relative. She reportedly left Mateen and joined relatives in Rodeo, California, by December 2015. At the time of his death, Mateen had a three-year-old son with his second wife.[21][49][50]
At the time of the shooting, he lived about 100 miles (160 kilometers) from Orlando, Florida,[9][10] in Fort Pierce, but received mail at his parents' home in nearby Port St. Lucie.[22] According to Florida Department of Law Enforcement records, he had no criminal record in Florida.[22]
Characterization
Mateen's father, Mir Seddique Mateen, who hosted a TV show called Durand Jirga Show on satellite television network Payam-e-Afghan in 2015 in which he represented himself as a candidate for the President of Afghanistan,[11][51] and who has expressed gratitude towards the Taliban,[52] said of his son's actions, "This had nothing to do with religion." He was quoted as saying that he had seen his son get angry after witnessing a gay couple kiss in front of his family at the Bayside Marketplace in Miami months prior to the attack, which he suggested might have been a motivating factor.[53][54]
Following the nightclub attack, Mateen's ex-wife told media outlets that during their marriage, Mateen was mentally unstable, and would beat her and keep her completely separated from her family.[55] She also said that he was bipolar and had a history of using steroids.[42] Mateen's second wife also said that Mateen became physically and verbally abusive towards her six months into their marriage, though she noted him being kinder during the last weeks of his life.[48] A former high school student told the Washington Post that he witnessed 15-year-old Mateen on the day of the September 11 attacks being physically assaulted by his father, Mir Seddique Mateen, in front of other students.[56]
Imam Shafiq Rahman at the Fort Pierce Islamic Center told reporters that Mateen would come to the mosque "three or four times a week"[57] with his father and his three-year-old son as recently as two days before the shooting, and said, "He was the most quiet guy. He would come and pray and leave. There was no indication at all of violence." Rahman added that he did not preach violence toward homosexuals.[58][59]
A former high school friend and coworker said that Mateen had no obvious conflicts with his gay coworkers at Treasure Coast Square, a shopping mall at Jensen Beach.[14][60]
A former coworker who worked with Mateen in a gated community in western Port St. Lucie described him as "unhinged and unstable". He also said that he frequently made homophobic, racist, and sexist comments, and talked about killing people.[6][61] The coworker stated he complained to G4S about Mateen "several times";[62] another co-worker told The New York Times Mateen made people wait at the gate for a number of reasons, including "if it was time for him to do his prayers."[63] A resident who had lived at the community since 2011 described Mateen as "very polite" and "a very nice, positive person",[61] however, another customer said Mateen "acted like a straight-up predator."[63]
Sexual orientation
People who knew Mateen have speculated that he might have been gay or bisexual. A male friend of his from 2006, when the two were in police academy together, said that Mateen went to gay clubs with him and that Mateen once expressed an interest in dating him. Club-goers also recalled Mateen dancing with another man.[64][65] One classmate, who asked not to be identified by name, said Mateen asked him if he was gay.[66][67] The FBI has investigated many of these claims and has not found reasonable evidence to establish that he was gay.[68]
After the shooting, the Orlando Sentinel and The Palm Beach Post reported that at least five regular customers at the Pulse nightclub had seen Mateen visit the venue on at least a dozen occasions. Sometimes Mateen drank in a corner by himself "and other times he would get so drunk he was loud and belligerent."[19][66] A witness, who recognized Mateen outside the club an hour before the shootings, told investigators that Mateen had been messaging him for about a year using a gay dating app called Jack'd. He gave his phone to the FBI for analysis, along with his login details for the application.[69] A third witness said that Mateen had tried to pick up men at the nightclub.[70] Dozens of other witnesses, however told the Tampa Bay Times that they had never seen Mateen at the nightclub.[8] A spokesperson for Barbara Poma, the owner of the Pulse nightclub, called the statement that Mateen had been a regular patron "untrue and totally ridiculous".[71]
Mateen's father Seddique denied that his son was closeted, saying, "If he was gay, why would he do something like this?"[67] Two days later, after multiple reports questioned whether Mateen was homosexual, Mateen's father said, "I didn't see any of it and I don't believe that was the case."[72] However, during an interview with the Brazilian television station SBT Brazil, Mateen's ex-wife claimed that his father called him gay while in her presence.[73][74] Following the shooting, Mateen's father stated, in an online video in his native language, Dari: "In this month of Ramadan, the gay and lesbian issue is something that God will punish", though "the servants of God shouldn't have anything to do with it."[75]
The Wall Street Journal reported Mateen's ex-wife as saying that "[he] did feel strongly about homosexuality".[67] When asked if Mateen was gay, his ex-wife said she "didn't know" and recalled that he had confessed to going to nightclubs.[64][65][76] Gawker reported that his ex-wife's fiance, Marco Dias, told Brazilian media in Portuguese that she had told him that Mateen had "gay tendencies".[77] He also added that his family and others believed he was gay, and that "the FBI asked her not to tell this to the American media".[73][74]
Investigation into claims
On June 16, The New York Times reported that the FBI was skeptical of reports that Mateen was "gay but 'closeted'" and that that he had made use of homosexual bars or apps.[78] On June 18, the same source added that "federal officials say they have found no evidence in his effects or online presence to back them up."[63] On June 23, the Los Angeles Times reported that the FBI has found no evidence "to support claims by those who say Mateen had gay lovers or communicated on gay dating apps." Investigators consider at least one claimant of homosexual relationships with Mateen not "credible": a man who self-identified as Mateen's lover-of-two-months, "Miguel", had said that he believed the massacre was out of revenge against Latino men when Mateen learned he may have been exposed to HIV from a Puerto Rican man with whom he had sex, but Mateen's autopsy results confirmed that he was HIV-negative.[79][80][81][82][83]
On June 25, The New York Times reported that after exhaustive investigation with help from the FBI, Adam4Adam concluded that Mateen had never used the Adam4Adam app. With regard to reports of Mateen using Adam4Adam and other dating sites and apps for gay men, an Adam4Adam spokesman said, "I think it was a hoax." Furthermore, the article stated that after 500 interviews, the FBI has not found any evidence of homosexuality "through [Mateen's] web searches, emails or other electronic data".[68] The FBI, however, "has found evidence that Mateen was cheating on his wife with other women".[79]
Attorney General Loretta Lynch is on record as saying of Mateen: "I do not want to definitively rule out any particular motivation here." She later added, "It's entirely possible that he had a singular motive. It's entirely possible that he had a dual motive."[84]
Alleged links to terrorist groups
The FBI investigated Mateen in May 2013 after he made "inflammatory" remarks while working as a security guard. Mateen had told his coworkers that his family was linked to al-Qaeda and that he had joined Hezbollah, both rivals of the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) and of one another. Mateen pledged allegiance to ISIL during his 2016 shooting. FBI Director James Comey commented on the contradictions within Mateen's statements. The FBI interviewed Mateen twice after opening an investigation; in these interviews, Mateen admitted to making the statements but "explained that he said them in anger because his co-workers were teasing him." After 10 months, the investigation was closed and Mateen determined not to be a threat. Mateen had been placed on a terrorist watch list while the investigation was under way, but he was removed from it afterwards. Mateen came to the FBI's attention again in July 2014, when he was linked to Moner Mohammad Abu Salha, an American who had traveled to Syria and committed a suicide bombing in late May 2014. The two had been acquainted and "attended the same mosque." The investigation continued, but focused on Abu Salha rather than Mateen,[85][86] law-enforcement officials told The Wall Street Journal.[32]
U.S. Representative Adam Schiff, the ranking Democratic member of the House Intelligence Committee, said that according to the Department of Homeland Security, Mateen had pledged allegiance to ISIL, though analysts noted that "at this point, it's anyone's guess as to how involved Omar Mateen was with either Al Qaeda or ISIL."[87] Mateen had also pledged support for a suicide bomber who claimed to represent the al-Nusra Front, a Syrian branch of al-Qaeda and an opponent of ISIL.[88][89] After Mateen's attack, the FBI determined his computer had been used to watch extremist videos, including beheadings, and "to seek information on Islamic State."[90] His wife knew he watched the jihadist videos, "but she did not think much of it because the F.B.I. seemed to have cleared him."[48] A survivor of the shooting said Mateen talked about wanting the United States to "stop bombing my country" and confirmed that Mateen pledged allegiance to ISIL.[91][92]
Role in the Orlando nightclub shooting
Before the shooting
Two months before the attack, Mateen transferred his share of a Port St. Lucie home for only $10 to his sister and brother-in-law.[93]
Mateen legally purchased a Sauer SIG MCX semi-automatic rifle and a 9mm Glock 17 handgun,[94][95][96][97] the two firearms later used in the shooting, from a gun shop in Port St. Lucie two weeks before the shooting.[98] He also attempted to purchase body armor, but was unable to do so as the store where he tried to make the purchase did not sell the product he sought.[99][100] A few weeks prior to the attack, he attempted to purchase body armor and 1,000 rounds of bulk ammunition at another gun shop, but the staff became suspicious of him and turned him away. A salesperson at the shop then said he contacted the FBI, but federal officials said they had no record of such a report, and the local sheriff's office also said it was unaware of the incident.[101][102]
Officials briefed on the investigation also stated that Mateen went to an unspecified Walt Disney World theme park with his wife.[44][103] He visited both Disney Springs, where security is less strict than at Disney theme parks, and Pulse between June 1 and 6 during the Gay Days 2016 celebrations at Disney World and in the Orlando area.[104]
NBC News reported that Mateen's second wife told the FBI she "drove him once to the gay nightclub, Pulse, because he wanted to scope it out".[105] An official involved with the investigation told the Associated Press that authorities believed she knew about the plot beforehand, but were reluctant to charge her based only on this suspicion.[106] Days prior to the shooting, she had accompanied Mateen on a trip to buy ammunition and warned him the evening prior to the event against anything that he might be planning.[12]
An imam for a mosque in Kissimmee said Mateen prayed there with his wife and child during the week preceding the shooting. He released video footage showing what appeared to be Mateen on June 8, four days before the shooting, praying for about ten minutes.[107]
Hours before the attack, Mateen stopped by his parents' home to visit his father, who said he did not notice anything strange about his son during the visit.[8] That same day, he gave his second wife $1,000 and allowed her to visit her mother in California.[48]
ABC News and Fox News reported that on the early morning of June 12, the day of the attack, Mateen posted on one of his Facebook accounts: "The real muslims will never accept the filthy ways of the west ... You kill innocent women and children by doing us airstrikes..now taste the Islamic state [sic] vengeance" as well as "America and Russia stop bombing the Islamic state." His final post to Facebook was "In the next few days you will see attacks from the Islamic State in the usa." These posts, since deleted, were uncovered by the United States Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs.[108][109]
Shooting and death
At approximately 2:00 a.m. on June 12, 2016, Mateen entered the Pulse nightclub in Orlando, Florida, and began shooting. At 2:22 a.m., he made a 9-1-1 call in which he pledged allegiance to ISIL; referenced Tamerlan and Dzhokhar Tsarnaev, the Boston Marathon bombers;[96] and mentioned Moner Mohammad Abu Salha, an acquaintance of his who died in a suicide bombing in Syria for the Al-Nusra Front in 2014.[110] According to FBI officials, Mateen made two other 9-1-1 calls during the shooting.[111] He also called News 13 of Orlando and identified himself as the nightclub shooter; The Washington Post reported that "he had carried out the Pulse attack for the Islamic State".[112][113]
Mateen took hostages after police arrived and engaged in a gunfight with him. At approximately 5:00 a.m., police shot and killed Mateen, ending the shooting. A total of 49 people were left dead along with Mateen and 53 others were injured.[114] Mateen was reported to have fired at least 110 rounds during the entire event.[115][116][117] The attack was the deadliest mass shooting by a single gunman in United States history[lower-alpha 1] the deadliest incident of violence against LGBT people in U.S. history,[119][lower-alpha 2] and the deadliest terrorist attack in the U.S. since September 11, 2001.[42][121]
After the shooting, Mateen was eventually buried in the Muslim Cemetery of South Florida, in Hialeah Gardens.[122] An autopsy found that Mateen was shot eight times by police in the head, chest, abdomen, calf, feet, and toe. The bullets, fired from a short distance, went through and through from front to back, suggesting Mateen was shot while facing officers. Several lacerations and "blunt-force injuries", such as bruising and scrapes to his torso, were found, though the origin of these wounds were made unclear. No alcohol or illegal drugs were detected in his system.[123][124][125]
See also
- List of Islamist terrorist attacks
- List of rampage killers
- Terrorism in the United States
- Violence against LGBT people
Notes
- ↑ The previous deadliest shooting had been the Virginia Tech shooting in 2007.[118]
- ↑ The previous deadliest incident of violence against LGBT people had been the UpStairs Lounge arson attack in 1973.[120]
References
- ↑ Berman, Russell (June 14, 2016). "Could Congress Have Stopped Omar Mateen From Getting His Guns? Democrats say yes. Here's their case for a firearms restriction on people on the terrorist watch list.". The Atlantic. Retrieved September 28, 2016.
- ↑ Doornbos, Caitlin (September 23, 2016). "Transcripts of 911 calls reveal Pulse shooter's terrorist motives". Orlando Sentinel. Retrieved September 28, 2016.
- ↑ Harris, Alex (September 24, 2016). "Mateen said he slaughtered club patrons to avenge U.S. airstrikes". The Miami Herald. Retrieved September 28, 2016.
- ↑ Kirby, Jen (September 26, 2016). "Orlando Gunman Omar Mateen Name-drops Obscure ISIS Terrorist in 911 Transcripts". New York Magazine. Retrieved September 28, 2016.
- ↑ Frosch, Dan; Hong, Nicole (September 27, 2016). "Transcripts Show ISIS Influence on Orlando Gunman: Omar Mateen cited the death of an Islamic State leader as a motivation for the June massacre". The Wall Street Journal. Retrieved September 28, 2016.
- 1 2 3 Williams, Pete; Connor, Tracy; Ortiz, Erik; Gosk, Stephanie (June 13, 2016). "Gunman Omar Mateen Described as Belligerent, Racist and 'Toxic'". NBC News. Retrieved June 13, 2016.
Records also show that he had filed a petition for a name change in 2006 from Omar Mir Seddique to Omar Mir Seddique Mateen.
- ↑ Yuhas, Alan (June 12, 2016). "Florida nightclub shooting: 50 killed and 53 injured in 'act of terror' – rolling updates". The Guardian. Retrieved June 12, 2016.
- 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 Montgomery, Ben; Howard, Samuel; LaForgia, Michael (June 13, 2016). "Before Orlando massacre, killer Omar Mateen visited parents one last time". Tampa Bay Times. Retrieved June 13, 2016.
- 1 2 "50 killed in shooting at Orlando nightclub, Mayor says". FOX News Channel. June 12, 2016. Retrieved June 12, 2016.
- 1 2 "CBS News: ISIS Claims Responsibility For Orlando Nightclub Attack That Left 50 Dead". CBS New York. Associated Press/CBS New York. June 12, 2016. Retrieved June 12, 2016.
- 1 2 Bearak, Max (June 12, 2016). "Orlando suspect's father hosted a TV show and now pretends to be Afghanistan's president". The Washington Post. Retrieved June 12, 2016.
- 1 2 3 4 5 Sullivan, Kevin; Wan, William (June 17, 2016). "Troubled. Quiet. Macho. Angry. The volatile life of the Orlando shooter.". The Washington Post. Retrieved June 18, 2016.
- 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Weiss, Mitch; Bynum, Russ (June 17, 2016). "Records: Orlando gunman talked about violence in 3rd grade". The Seattle Times. Retrieved June 17, 2016.
- 1 2 3 Fagenson, Zachary (June 13, 2016). "Gunman in worst U.S. massacre described as 'quiet' but grew hateful". Reuters. Retrieved June 13, 2016.
- 1 2 Gosk, Stephanie; Winter, Tom; Connor, Tracy (June 16, 2016). "Orlando Shooter Omar Mateen Arrested as Teen for Fight, Records Show". NBC News. Retrieved June 16, 2016.
- 1 2 Wan, William; Murphy, Brian (June 13, 2016). "On 9/11, the Orlando shooter's classmates mourned. Some say he celebrated.". The Washington Post. Retrieved June 13, 2016.
- ↑ "'Always Agitated. Always Mad': Omar Mateen, According to Those Who Knew Him". The New York Times. Retrieved June 19, 2016.
was Omar Mateen betraying his latent extremist sympathies — or was he just being tone-deaf — when, at 14, he shocked other students on his school bus by imitating an exploding plane so soon after the Sept. 11 attacks? 'He got on, walked up the first couple of steps, held his arms out and made sounds like a motor and then made an explosion sound — and slipped into his seat,' Robert Zirkle, another student on the bus, remembered. 'He did this three or four times
- ↑ Stutzman, Rene; Inman, Jessica (June 13, 2016). "Omar Mateen: Father, security guard, 'dorky' in school". Orlando Sentinel. Retrieved June 13, 2016.
- 1 2 Lotan, Gal Tziperman; Brinkmann, Paul; Stutzman, Rene (June 13, 2016). "Gunman Omar Mateen visited gay nightclub a dozen times before shooting, witness says". Orlando Sentinel. Retrieved June 13, 2016.
- ↑ Brady, Ryan (June 13, 2016). "Orlando shooter born in New Hyde Park". Queens Chronicle. Retrieved June 13, 2016.
- 1 2 3 4 5 Jacobo, Julia (June 15, 2016). "New Details Emerge About Orlando Nightclub Shooter Omar Mateen". ABC News. Retrieved June 15, 2016.
- 1 2 3 4 Jones, Elliott (June 12, 2016). "Who is Omar Mateen?". Treasure Coast Newspapers. Retrieved June 12, 2016.
- ↑ Connor, Tracy; Winter, Tom (June 17, 2016). "Orlando Gunman Talked About Bringing Gun to Training Class in 2007". NBC News. Retrieved June 18, 2016.
- ↑ "Omar Mateen: What we know, don't know about Orlando nightclub shooter". Tampa Bay Times. June 13, 2016. Retrieved June 14, 2016.
- ↑ Beall, Pat; Morgan, Matt; Mower, Lawrence; Stapleton, Christine (June 12, 2016). "Vero Beach bomber tied to Mateen posted anti-gay video on Facebook". The Palm Beach Post. Retrieved June 14, 2016.
- ↑ "A G4S Secure Solutions (USA) Inc. Publication". g4s.com. Fall 2012. p. 10. Retrieved June 14, 2016.
- ↑ Katersky, Aaron; Meek, James Gordon; Margolin, Josh; Hayden, Michael Edison (June 12, 2016). "What We Know About Omar Mateen, Suspected Orlando Nightclub Shooter". ABC News. Retrieved June 14, 2016.
- ↑ Woo, Stu (June 13, 2016). "Orlando Nightclub Shooting Puts G4S in Spotlight Again: U.K.-based security giant that employed Omar Mateen said its vetting had raised no red flags". The Wall Street Journal. Retrieved June 14, 2016.
- ↑ Barry, Dan; Kovaleski, Serge F.; Blinder, Alan (June 18, 2016). "'Always Agitated. Always Mad': Omar Mateen, According to Those Who Knew Him". The New York Times. Retrieved June 19, 2016.
In 2013, G4S removed Mr. Mateen from his security post at the St. Lucie County Courthouse after he had made 'inflammatory comments' about being involved somehow in terrorism.
- 1 2 3 McRoberts, Meghan (October 19, 2016). "PGA Village residents present findings of investigation into G4S following concern of Omar Mateen". WPTV. Retrieved October 19, 2016.
- ↑ "'Clerical error' on Orlando killer's psychological eval named wrong doctor". The Miami Herald. Retrieved 19 June 2016.
The company kept Mateen as an employee, moving him to a kiosk at a gated community in Palm Beach County
- 1 2 Katersky, Aaron; Meek, James Gordon; Margolin, Josh; Hayden, Michael Edison (June 12, 2016). "What We Know About Omar Mateen, Suspected Orlando Nightclub Shooter". ABC News. Retrieved June 12, 2016.
- ↑ "Mateen, Omar". Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services. Retrieved June 14, 2016.
- ↑ Lotan, Gal Tziperman; Brinkmann, Paul; Stutzman, Rene (June 13, 2016). "Witness: Omar Mateen drank alone at Pulse before attack". Orlando Sentinel. Retrieved June 13, 2016.
- ↑ Cormier, Anthony (September 9, 2016). "State slaps $150,000 fine on security firm that employed Orlando Pulse shooter Omar Mateen". The Tampa Bay Times. Retrieved September 10, 2016.
- ↑ "The Big Fix". A YouTube video clip was used for purposes of discussion to establish the man's identity.
- ↑ "Documentary Footage Shows Omar Mateen In 2010". Sky News. June 15, 2016. Retrieved June 15, 2016.
- ↑ Mauney, Matt (June 15, 2016). "2012 documentary shows Omar Mateen working security during BP oil spill". Orlando Sentinel. Retrieved June 15, 2016.
- ↑ Ovalle, David (June 17, 2016). "'Clerical error' on Orlando killer's psychological eval named wrong doctor". The Miami Herald.
- ↑ Healy, Jack (June 13, 2016). "Sitora Yusufiy, Ex-Wife of Orlando Suspect, Describes Abusive Marriage". The New York Times. Retrieved June 14, 2016.
- ↑ "Orlando shooting suspect married, divorced within 2 years". Evansville Courier & Press. June 12, 2016. Retrieved June 13, 2016.
- 1 2 3 Fantz, Ashley; Karimi, Faith; McLaughlin, Eliott C. (June 12, 2016). "50 killed in Florida nightclub, shooter pledged ISIS allegiance". CNN. Retrieved June 14, 2016.
- ↑ "Orlando gunman visited Saudi Arabia on NYU trip with 12 NYPD cops". Daily News. New York. June 18, 2016. Retrieved June 19, 2016.
'People on the trip can make their own decisions about how to spend their time, though typically most people participate in the day's itinerary,' NYU spokesman John Beckman told the Wall Street Journal.
- 1 2 3 Shallwani, Pervaiz; Barrett, Devlin; Al Omran, Ahmed; Entous, Adam (June 13, 2016). "Orlando Shooter Scouted Walt Disney World During Search for Targets". The Wall Street Journal. Retrieved June 13, 2016.
- ↑ Bertrand, Natasha (June 13, 2016). "Orlando shooter reportedly traveled to Saudi Arabia twice for a religious pilgrimage". Business Insider. Retrieved June 14, 2016.
- ↑ Vinograd, Cassandra (June 13, 2016). "Gunman Was 'Cool and Calm' During Negotiations: Officials". NBC News. Retrieved June 14, 2016.
- ↑ Chappell, Bill (June 13, 2016). "Orlando Gunman Had Been Taken Off Watch List, FBI Director Says". Retrieved June 17, 2016.
- 1 2 3 4 Goldman, Adam (November 1, 2016). "Orlando Gunman's Wife Breaks Silence: 'I Was Unaware'". The New York Times. Retrieved November 1, 2016.
- ↑ Mathis-Lilley, Ben (June 14, 2016). "Omar Mateen Had Remarried, and His Wife Apparently Knew About His Attack Plans". Slate. Retrieved June 14, 2016.
- ↑ "Florida nightclub shooter apparently made threats in the past; ex-wife claims he beat her and took steroids". Fox News Channel. June 12, 2016. Retrieved June 12, 2016.
- ↑ Mateen, Seddique (May 23, 2015). "Seddique Mateen candidacy announcement for President of Afghanistan_B (5.23.2015 Part 1 of 3)" (YouTube video). Durand Jirga Show. Retrieved June 12, 2016.
- ↑ Craig, Tim; Bearak, Max; Powell, Lee (June 13, 2016). "Shooter Omar Mateen's father says he's saddened by massacre, calls gunman 'a good son'". The Washington Post. Retrieved June 21, 2016.
In one video, the elder Mateen expresses gratitude toward the Afghan Taliban while denouncing the Pakistani government.
- ↑ Williams, Pete; Conner, Tracy; Ortiz, Erik (June 12, 2016). "Terror? Hate? What Motivated Orlando Nightclub Shooter?". NBC News. Retrieved June 12, 2016.
- ↑ Grimson, Matthew; Wyllie, David; Fieldstadt, Elisha (June 12, 2016). "Orlando Nightclub Shooting: Mass Casualties After Gunman Opens Fire in Gay Club". NBC News. Retrieved June 13, 2016.
- ↑ Goldman, Adam; Tate, Julie (June 12, 2016). "Ex-wife of suspected Orlando shooter: 'He beat me'". The Washington Post. Retrieved June 12, 2016.
- ↑ Wan, William; Murphy, Brian (June 13, 2016). "On 9/11, the Orlando shooter's classmates mourned. Some say he celebrated". The Washington Post. Retrieved June 13, 2016.
- ↑ Nehamas, Nicholas; Gurney, Kyra; Ovalle, David; Brown, Julie K. (June 12, 2016). "Omar Mateen: Portrait of America's deadliest mass shooter". Retrieved June 13, 2016.
Imam Syed Shafeeq Rahman said Mateen had been a regular attendee since childhood and came in for worship three or four times a week.
- ↑ "Orlando shooting". The Washington Post. June 12, 2016. Retrieved June 12, 2016.
- ↑ Lawler, David (June 13, 2016). "Omar Mateen's imam says he was known at the mosque for being aggressive". The Daily Telegraph. Retrieved June 14, 2016.
- ↑ Zavadski, Katie; Waddell, Lynn (June 12, 2016). "Drag Queen: Orlando Gunman Omar Mateen Was My Friend". The Daily Beast. Retrieved June 12, 2016.
- 1 2 Westbury, Anthony; Rodriguez, Nicole; Jones, Elliot (June 12, 2016). "Co-worker: Omar Mateen homophobic, 'unhinged'". USA Today. Florida Today. Retrieved June 12, 2016.
- ↑ "Co-worker: Omar Mateen homophobic, 'unhinged'". USA Today Network. June 12, 2016. Retrieved June 13, 2016.
Gilroy, a former Fort Pierce police officer, said Mateen frequently made homophobic and racial comments. Gilroy said he complained to his employer several times but it did nothing because he was Muslim.
- 1 2 3 Barry, Dan; Kovaleski, Serge F.; Blinder, Alan; Mashal, Mujib (June 19, 2016). "'Always Agitated. Always Mad': Omar Mateen, According to Those Who Knew Him". The New York Times. Retrieved June 19, 2016.
- 1 2 Sandoval, Edgar (June 13, 2016). "Orlando shooter was regular at Pulse gay club; former classmate says Omar Mateen was homosexual". The New York Daily News. Retrieved June 13, 2016.
- 1 2 "Orlando shooter Omar Mateen was gay, former classmate says". The Palm Beach Post. June 13, 2016. Retrieved June 13, 2016.
- 1 2 Mower, Lawrence (June 14, 2016). "Orlando shooter Omar Mateen was gay, former classmate says". The Palm Beach Post. Retrieved June 14, 2016.
- 1 2 3 Mitchell, Josh; Bauerlein, Valerie; Paletta, Damian (June 14, 2016). "Before Orlando Shooter's Routine Last Days, Hints of Instability". The Wall Street Journal. Retrieved June 14, 2016.
Mr. Mateen had 'confessed' to his ex-wife that in the past 'he very much enjoyed going to clubs and nightlife,' she told CNN on Monday. He 'never made any indication while we were together that he was gay, but he did feel strongly about homosexuality,' she said.
- 1 2 Robles, Frances; Turkewitz, Julie (June 26, 2016). "Was the Orlando Gunman Gay? The Answer Continues to Elude the F.B.I.". The New York Times. Retrieved June 29, 2016.
Adam4Adam combed through the profile photos of every one of its 300,000 Florida members and researched 20 email addresses used by Mr. Mateen over the years that the company said had been provided by the F.B.I. Adam4Adam came up with nothing. 'I think it was a hoax,' David Lesage, a spokesman for the Montreal-based company, said [...] F.B.I. investigators, who have conducted more than 500 interviews in the case, are continuing to contact men who claim to have had sexual relations with Mr. Mateen or think they saw him at gay bars. But so far, they have not found any independent corroboration — through his web searches, emails or other electronic data — to establish that he was, in fact, gay
- ↑ "Orlando gunman had used gay dating app and visited LGBT nightclub on other occasions, witnesses say". Los Angeles Times. June 13, 2016. Retrieved June 13, 2016.
- ↑ Pilkington, Ed; Elgot, Jessica (June 14, 2016). "Orlando gunman Omar Mateen 'was a regular at Pulse nightclub'". The Guardian. Retrieved June 14, 2016.
- ↑ Stein, Letitia; Edwards, Julia (June 15, 2016). "Federal grand jury could charge wife of Orlando shooter". Reuters. Retrieved June 15, 2016.
- ↑ "Orlando gunman's father reacts to speculation son was gay". CBS News. June 14, 2016. Retrieved June 14, 2016.
- 1 2 "Ex-wife's bombshell claim: Club shooter was gay". New York Post. June 13, 2016. Retrieved June 16, 2016.
- 1 2 "FBI Told Orlando Shooter's Wife Not To Tell US Media He Was Gay". Mint Press News. June 16, 2016. Retrieved June 16, 2016.
- ↑ Hennessy-Fiske, Molly; Jarvie, Jenny; Wilber, Del Quentin (June 14, 2016). "Orlando gunman had used gay dating app and visited LGBT nightclub on other occasions, witnesses say". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved June 14, 2016.
- ↑ "Omar Mateen used gay dating app Jack'd: witness". Ninemsn. June 14, 2016. Retrieved June 14, 2016.
- ↑ Bluestone, Gabrielle (June 12, 2016). "Reports: Ex-Wife and Classmate Say Orlando Killer Was Gay". Gawker. Retrieved June 13, 2016.
- ↑ "Omar Mateen Posted to Facebook Amid Orlando Attack, Lawmaker Says". The New York Times. June 16, 2016. Retrieved June 18, 2016.
Federal law enforcement officials said Thursday that the F.B.I. is increasingly skeptical of reports that Mr. Mateen was gay but 'closeted', that he had been visiting gay clubs or that he had used gay dating apps.
- 1 2 Goldman, Adam (July 15, 2016). "FBI has found no evidence that Orlando shooter targeted Pulse because it was a gay club". The Washington Post. Retrieved July 16, 2016.
The FBI, however, has been unable to verify that Mateen used gay dating apps and instead has found evidence that Mateen was cheating on his wife with other women. Officials said there is nothing to suggest that he attempted to cover up his tracks by deleting files. They also added he did not make gay slurs during the shooting spree inside the club, based on witnesses.
- ↑ "Omar Mateen's Alleged Male Lover Claims Orlando Nightclub Shooting Was Act Of 'Revenge'". CBS New York. June 22, 2016. Retrieved July 1, 2016.
- ↑ "Omar Mateen's Alleged Male Lover: 'He Did It For Revenge' Against Latino Men". CBS New York. June 21, 2016. Retrieved July 4, 2016.
- ↑ Otis, Ginger Adams (July 15, 2016). "Orlando nightclub shooter Omar Mateen was HIV-negative and user of steroids, autopsy shows". New York Daily News. Retrieved July 16, 2016.
- ↑ Hennessy-Fiske, Molly. "FBI investigators say they have found no evidence that Orlando shooter had gay lovers". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved June 24, 2016.
But the FBI has found no evidence so far to support claims by those who say Mateen had gay lovers or communicated on gay dating apps, several law enforcement officials said. [...] He said Mateen had sex with other men too, including a threesome with a Puerto Rican who allegedly told Mateen, after having had unprotected sex with him, that he was HIV positive. But investigators do not consider the man’s account credible.
- ↑ Tucker, Eric; Schneider, Mike (June 21, 2016). "No 'Magic Bullet' Against Jihadist Propaganda, Lynch Says". Associated Press. Retrieved June 21, 2016.
- ↑ Shabad, Rebecca (June 13, 2016). "FBI Director Comey: "highly confident" Orlando shooter radicalized through internet". CBS News. Retrieved June 13, 2016.
- ↑ Barrett, Devlin; Entous, Adam; Cullison, Alan (June 13, 2016). "FBI Twice Probed Orlando Gunman". The Wall Street Journal. Retrieved June 21, 2016.
Law-enforcement officials said that investigation was prompted because Abu-Salha and Mateen attended the same mosque.
- ↑ Bertrand, Natasha (June 12, 2016). "ISIS-linked news agency claims responsibility for shooting rampage at gay nightclub that left 50 dead". Business Insider. Retrieved June 12, 2016.
- ↑ "Orlando: Omar Mateen 'pledged loyalty to ISIL, others'". Al Jazeera. June 14, 2016. Retrieved June 14, 2016.
- ↑ Williams, Pete; Connor, Tracy; Ortiz, Erik; Gosk, Stephanie (June 12, 2016). "Gunman Omar Mateen Described as Belligerent, Racist and 'Toxic'". NBC News. Retrieved June 12, 2016.
- ↑ Wilber, Del Quentin (July 14, 2016). "The FBI investigated the Orlando mass shooter for 10 months — and found nothing. Here's why". The Los Angeles Times. Retrieved July 14, 2016.
the FBI determined that Mateen’s laptop computer had been used in recent years to view extremist videos online, including grisly beheadings. It also was used to seek information on Islamic State.
- ↑ Smith, David (June 15, 2016). "Omar Mateen's wife may be charged if she knew he was planning Orlando shooting". The Guardian. Retrieved June 15, 2016.
- ↑ "Orlando survivor: Gunman tried to spare black people". CBS News. June 14, 2016. Retrieved June 15, 2016.
- ↑ "Orlando gunman had turned over share of house to relatives for $10 | Fox News". Fox News Channel. June 17, 2016. Retrieved June 18, 2016.
- ↑ "Orlando shooter was 'cool and calm' at the end". CBS News. June 13, 2016. Retrieved June 13, 2016.
- ↑ Caplan, David; Hayden, Michael Edison (June 12, 2016). "At Least 50 Dead in Orlando Gay Club Shooting, Suspect Pledged Allegiance to ISIS, Officials Say". ABC News. Retrieved June 12, 2016.
- 1 2 Narayan, Chandrika (June 12, 2016). "Timeline of Orlando nightclub shooting". CNN. Retrieved June 12, 2016.
- ↑ "50 dead, Islamic terrorism tie eyed in Orlando gay bar shooting". CBS News. Associated Press. June 12, 2016. Retrieved June 14, 2016.
- ↑ Winter, Tom; Connor, Tracy (June 13, 2016). "Dealer Who Sold Orlando Massacre Guns: 'I Don't Make the Laws'". NBC News. Retrieved June 13, 2016.
- ↑ Perez, Evan; Prokupecz, Shimon; Shoichet, Catherine E. (June 12, 2016). "Omar Mateen pledged allegiance to ISIS, official says". CNN. Retrieved June 12, 2016.
- ↑ Detman, Gary (June 12, 2016). "Reports: Omar Mateen of Fort Pierce identified as Pulse Nightclub killer". FOX 28 Media. Retrieved June 12, 2016.
- ↑ Yan, Holly; Brown, Pamela; Perez, Evan (June 16, 2016). "Orlando shooter texted wife during attack, source says". CNN. Retrieved June 16, 2016.
- ↑ Ross, Brian; Wagschal, Gerry; Schwartz, Rhonda (June 16, 2016). "Orlando Shooter Was Turned Away From Different Gun Store for Being 'Suspicious'". Yahoo! GMA. Retrieved June 16, 2016.
- ↑ Rayner, Gordon; Lawler, David; Alexander, Harriet (June 13, 2016). "Disney World was scouted by Orlando gunman Omar Mateen as possible terror target". The Daily Telegraph. Retrieved June 13, 2016.
- ↑ Perez, Evan; Prokupecz, Shimon; Ap, Tiffany (June 14, 2016). "Patron: Mateen was familiar face at Pulse nightclub". CNN. Retrieved June 14, 2016.
- ↑ Williams, Pete; Winter, Tom; Dienst, Jonathan; Dilanian, Ken (June 14, 2016). "Omar Mateen's Wife Tried to Talk Him Out of Orlando Attack, Sources Say". NBC News. Retrieved June 14, 2016.
- ↑ Noble, Andrea (June 14, 2016). "Omar Mateen a regular at Pulse: 'He was a homosexual, and he was trying to pick up men'". The Washington Times. Retrieved June 14, 2016.
- ↑ Rodgers, Bethany (September 28, 2016). "Imam: Omar Mateen prayed at Kissimmee mosque days before attack". Orlando Sentinel. Retrieved September 29, 2016.
- ↑ Ross, Brian; Schwartz, Rhonda; Dukakis, Alexandra; Ferran, Lee (June 15, 2016). "Orlando Shooter on Facebook: Now 'Taste' ISIS 'Vengeance'". ABC News. Retrieved June 15, 2016.
'You kill innocent women and children by doing us airstrikes..now taste the Islamic state vengeance,' Mateen posted early Sunday morning, according to officials in the FBI's counterterrorism division. 'In the next few days you will see attacks from the Islamic State in the usa.'
- ↑ Zimmerman, Malia (June 15, 2016). "Orlando terrorist's chilling Facebook posts from inside club revealed". Fox News Channel. Retrieved June 16, 2016.
'The real muslims will never accept the filthy ways of the west ... You kill innocent women and children by doing us airstrikes..now taste the Islamic state vengeance.'
- ↑ Bertrand, Natasha; Engel, Pamela (June 13, 2016). "The FBI director just painted a bizarre picture of the man behind the worst mass shooting in US history". Business Insider. Retrieved June 13, 2016.
- ↑ "FBI Boston Chief: In Call, Mateen Referred To Tsarnaevs As His 'Homeboys'". WBUR News. June 13, 2016. Retrieved June 14, 2016.
- ↑ Miller, Michael E. (June 15, 2016). "'I'm the shooter. It's me': Gunman called local TV station during attack, station says". The Washington Post. Retrieved June 15, 2016.
The caller then said he had carried out the Pulse attack for the Islamic State and began speaking quickly in Arabic.
- ↑ Fais, Scott (June 15, 2016). "Mateen to News 13 producer: 'I'm the shooter. It's me.'". News 13. Retrieved June 15, 2016.
- ↑ Stolberg, Sheryl Gay; Pérez-Peña, Richard (June 14, 2016). "Orlando Shooting Survivors Cope With the Trauma of Good Fortune". The New York Times. Retrieved June 14, 2016.
The slaughter early Sunday left 49 victims dead, in addition to the gunman, and 53 wounded ...More than 30 of the wounded remained in hospitals on Tuesday, including at least six who were in critical condition.
- ↑ Alexander, Harriet; Lawler, David (June 13, 2016). "'We thought it was part of the music': how the Pulse nightclub massacre unfolded in Orlando". The Daily Telegraph. Retrieved June 13, 2016.
- ↑ "Law enforcement source: 202 rounds fired during Pulse nightclub shooting in Orlando". WSOC-TV. June 13, 2016. Retrieved June 15, 2016.
- ↑ Rothwell, James; Alexander, Harriet; Sherlock, Ruth; Akkoc, Raziye; Graham, Chris (June 13, 2016). "Details emerge about Orlando gunman Omar Mateen". The Telegraph. Retrieved July 20, 2016.
- ↑ "Fifty dead in Orlando gay nightclub shooting, worst mass killing in U.S. history; gunman reportedly pledged allegiance to Islamic State". Los Angeles Times. June 12, 2016. Retrieved June 14, 2016.
- ↑ Stern, Mark Joseph (June 12, 2016). "The Long, Tragic History of Violence at LGBTQ Bars and Clubs in America". Slate. Retrieved June 12, 2016.
- ↑ Stack, Liam (June 13, 2016). "Before Orlando Shooting, an Anti-Gay Massacre in New Orleans Was Largely Forgotten". The New York Times. Retrieved June 13, 2016.
The terrorist attack that killed 49 and wounded 53 in Orlando, Fla., was the largest mass killing of gay people in American history, but before Sunday that grim distinction was held by a largely forgotten arson at a New Orleans bar in 1973 that killed 32 people at a time of pernicious anti-gay stigma.
- ↑ Swanson, Ann (June 12, 2016). "The Orlando attack could transform the picture of post-9/11 terrorism in America". The Washington Post. Retrieved June 14, 2016.
- ↑ Cherney, Elyssa (July 27, 2016). "Senator: FBI investigations into Pulse gunman need review". Orlando Sentinel. Retrieved July 31, 2016.
- ↑ Doornbos, Caitlin (August 5, 2016). "Autopsy: Pulse shooter Omar Mateen shot eight times". Orlando Sentinel. Retrieved August 6, 2016.
- ↑ Sickles, Jason (August 5, 2016). "Pulse nightclub shooter Omar Mateen shot eight times, autopsy reveals". Yahoo! News. Retrieved August 5, 2016.
- ↑ Villarreal, Yezmin (August 6, 2016). "Autopsy Report Reveals Omar Mateen Was Shot Eight Times". The Advocate. Retrieved August 6, 2016.
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