Post by Willow on Jun 14, 2016 10:28:50 GMT 9.5
Orlando gunman Omar Mateen visited the gay nightclub where he killed 49 patrons a dozen times before the massacre.
The Orlando Sentinel reports that at least four regular clubgoers said they had seen the killer there before. “Sometimes he would go over in the corner and sit and drink by himself, and other times he would get so drunk he was loud and belligerent,” said Ty Smith, who also uses the name Aries.
More details are emerging about the 29-year-old gunman and what he did in the days leading up to the massacre, the deadliest mass shooting in US history.
The FBI’s director says the agency is trying to determine whether Mateen had recently scouted Walt Disney World and other locations as potential targets.
When asked whether Disney and other locations had been scouted, Director James Comey said, “We’re still working through that.”
Various media outlets, quoting unnamed federal law enforcement sources, report that Mateen had recently scouted the theme park.
Details have also been released about the 911 call the gunman made from inside the Pulse nightclub during the attack in which he pledged solidarity to the Islamic State and Al-Nusra terror groups.
Harold Shaw, special agent in charge of the FBI’s Boston division, said Mateen claimed he was inspired by the Tsarnaev brothers, Dzhokhar and Tamerlan, who were responsible for the Boston bombings, calling them his “homeboys’’.
Despite the reference, Shaw and other authorities have said the investigation has not uncovered any evidence of a relationship between the Tsarnaevs and Mateen
Massachusetts Governor Charlie Baker said Mateen had previously mentioned the Tsarnaev brothers. “We do know that he raised the Tsarnaev brothers a couple of years ago, and there were a series of interviews and discussions directly with him by federal officials, and they concluded at that point in time that there was no direct connection between him and them at all,” the governor said.
Baker did not elaborate. He said he was relaying information Massachusetts officials received during a briefing by federal officials investigating the Orlando shooting.
The Tsarnaevs planted two pressure-cooker bombs near the finish line of the marathon on April 15, 2013, killing three people and injuring more than 260.
Tamerlan Tsarnaev, 26, was killed during a getaway attempt several days after the bombings. Dzhokhar, then 19, was sentenced to death last year for his role in the bombings.
During Dzhokhar Tsarnaev’s trial, his lawyers argued Dzhokhar had been heavily influenced by Tamerlan, a former boxer who embraced radical Islam and masterminded the bombings. Prosecutors said the Tsarnaevs, Muslims who lived in the Soviet republic of Kyrgyzstan and Russia before coming to the United States as children, became radicalized in part by reading online extremist materials, including Inspire, an al-Qa’ida magazine.
Mateen, the son of an Afghan immigrant, had “strong indications of radicalisation” and was likely inspired by foreign terrorist organisations, FBI Director James Comey said.
Authorities said Mateen had twice come to the FBI’s attention. Once was by co-workers who expressed concern over statements he’d made about possible ties to terrorist groups, sparking a 10-month investigation.
The Orlando Sentinel reports that at least four regular clubgoers said they had seen the killer there before. “Sometimes he would go over in the corner and sit and drink by himself, and other times he would get so drunk he was loud and belligerent,” said Ty Smith, who also uses the name Aries.
More details are emerging about the 29-year-old gunman and what he did in the days leading up to the massacre, the deadliest mass shooting in US history.
The FBI’s director says the agency is trying to determine whether Mateen had recently scouted Walt Disney World and other locations as potential targets.
When asked whether Disney and other locations had been scouted, Director James Comey said, “We’re still working through that.”
Various media outlets, quoting unnamed federal law enforcement sources, report that Mateen had recently scouted the theme park.
Details have also been released about the 911 call the gunman made from inside the Pulse nightclub during the attack in which he pledged solidarity to the Islamic State and Al-Nusra terror groups.
Harold Shaw, special agent in charge of the FBI’s Boston division, said Mateen claimed he was inspired by the Tsarnaev brothers, Dzhokhar and Tamerlan, who were responsible for the Boston bombings, calling them his “homeboys’’.
Despite the reference, Shaw and other authorities have said the investigation has not uncovered any evidence of a relationship between the Tsarnaevs and Mateen
Massachusetts Governor Charlie Baker said Mateen had previously mentioned the Tsarnaev brothers. “We do know that he raised the Tsarnaev brothers a couple of years ago, and there were a series of interviews and discussions directly with him by federal officials, and they concluded at that point in time that there was no direct connection between him and them at all,” the governor said.
Baker did not elaborate. He said he was relaying information Massachusetts officials received during a briefing by federal officials investigating the Orlando shooting.
The Tsarnaevs planted two pressure-cooker bombs near the finish line of the marathon on April 15, 2013, killing three people and injuring more than 260.
Tamerlan Tsarnaev, 26, was killed during a getaway attempt several days after the bombings. Dzhokhar, then 19, was sentenced to death last year for his role in the bombings.
During Dzhokhar Tsarnaev’s trial, his lawyers argued Dzhokhar had been heavily influenced by Tamerlan, a former boxer who embraced radical Islam and masterminded the bombings. Prosecutors said the Tsarnaevs, Muslims who lived in the Soviet republic of Kyrgyzstan and Russia before coming to the United States as children, became radicalized in part by reading online extremist materials, including Inspire, an al-Qa’ida magazine.
Mateen, the son of an Afghan immigrant, had “strong indications of radicalisation” and was likely inspired by foreign terrorist organisations, FBI Director James Comey said.
Authorities said Mateen had twice come to the FBI’s attention. Once was by co-workers who expressed concern over statements he’d made about possible ties to terrorist groups, sparking a 10-month investigation.