New developments keep popping up with the terrorist attack in Orlando, FL, that left 49 dead and over 50 injured. This is what we know so far.
Leslie wrote a post with the names of the victims and some stories about them. Our thoughts and prayers stay with them and their families during this hard time. We also wish a speedy recovery to the injured.
Omar Mateen murdered those 49 people at Pulse, a popular gay club, as he pledged allegiance to the Islamic State (ISIS/ISIL). The terrorist group has taken advantage of this and used his image in their latest recruitment ad, but no evidence exists that that Mateen ever communicated with the group.
Officials discovered that Mateen watched numerous ISIS beheadings online. One official told CNN that the terrorist “consumed a hell of a lot of jihadist propaganda.” He even wrote on Facebook about his allegiance to ISIS during his attack:
“I pledge my alliance to (ISIS leader) abu bakr al Baghdadi..may Allah accept me,” Mateen wrote in one post early Sunday morning. “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.”
Mateen worked as a security guard for G4S Security. A former coworker complained to his superiors about Mateen’s numerous homophobic and racist comments. However, no one fired him because he was Muslim.
Mateen’s father Seddique praised the Taliban in his native Afghanistan and pretends to be the Afghani president. At first, he condemned homosexuals, saying that “God will punish those involved” and “not an issue that humans should deal with.” He walked back his comments when CBS News reached out to him.
After the massacre, Seddique said his son did not slaughter over 50 people because of their religion. He claimed his son “got angry” when he saw two men kissing Miami. Mateen expressed disgust with the action, especially since he had his son with him.
Yet, some friends have said that Mateen never expressed disgust for gays. A drag queen friend even took Mateen to a show. However, the FBI found out Mateen visited online gay chat rooms and had profiles on gay dating apps. They do not know for sure if he did this because he was gay or scouting targets. So far no one has admitted having sexual relations with Mateen.
His ex-wife told The Washington Post that their marriage started normal, but became abusive:
“He was not a stable person,” said the ex-wife, who spoke on the condition of anonymity because she feared for her safety in the wake of the mass shooting. “He beat me. He would just come home and start beating me up because the laundry wasn’t finished or something like that.”
They met online and she moved to Florida to marry him. She never witnessed any movement towards radical Islam during their brief time together.
But her parents swooped in and rescued their daughter when they learned her husband assaulted her. They took her back home, which is not mentioned in the article, but they came from Uzbekistan, and left all her belongings in the condo.
His current wife may face charges as an accessory because she didn’t notify law enforcement about his plans to commit a terrorist attack. On Saturday, Mateen told her he wanted to visit friends, but drove over an hour to Pulse. She admitted she drove him past the club at least once.
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