The worst mass shooting in the U.S. took place early this morning in Orlando, Florida.
At around 2 a.m. at a “gay” club called Pulse with about 320 people inside, a gunman carrying an assault-style weapon, a handgun and what police called “some type of other device,” first exchanged shots with an officer working at the club before he went inside and opened fire, killing 50 and wounding another 53.
When the police arrived, the gunman held the remaining people hostage for 3 hours before a SWAT Team busted into the club, exchanged shots with and killed the shooter.
- His name is Omar Mir Seddique Mateen, 29.
- Born in the U.S., Mateen is a U.S. citizen, the son of Afghan immigrants.
- Mateen had a Florida security officer license. He had been employed since 2007 at private security company G4S that provides security to federal buildings.
- Mateen had two licenses to carry firearms in Florida: a Class D license, given to security guards; and a Class G license, which is a general concealed carry license. Both were set to expire in September 2017. An ATF spokesperson confirmed that Mateen was able to legally purchase guns, and bought both of the weapons used in the attack within the last week. (Gawker)
- Mateen had no criminal record.
- Although Mateen’s father, Mir Seddique, said the attack had nothing to do with religion and that the shooting probably was because his son got angry when he saw two men kissing in Miami a couple of months ago, CBS News says that Mateen had ties to Islamic terrorism. NBC News says he had called 911 before the shooting to pledge his allegiance to ISIS/Islamic State leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi It’s not known if he had accomplices.
- Mateen was on the FBI’s radar for several years. An FBI spokesperson said that Matten was interviewed by the FBI twice in 2013 after making threats to a coworker, and once in 2014 after being linked to an American suicide bomber. In both instances, the FBI found no sufficient evidence to continue with their investigations. Mateen was not under investigation or surveillance when he committed the massacre.
- TMZ says that authorities believe the shooting was a terrorist attack and a hate crime.
- Mateen is a Democrat. Here’s his voter registration (from Florida Voters):
In other words, Omar Mateen is the liberal media’s worst nightmare in that he does not fit their prejudicial knee-jerk stereotype of a mass shooter:
- Mateen is not white or Christian, but a “person of color” and Muslim.
- Mateen is not a Republican, but a Democrat.
- Mateen purchased his firearms legally and, not having a criminal record, would not be barred from gun purchase. In other words, gun control — which Obama immediately called for in reaction to the shooting — would not have deterred Mateen. Even a total ban on gun sales would not have stopped Mateen because he would have access to firearms as a licensed security officer.
Omar Mateen should be a warning to Americans that radical Islamism is now home-grown and a clear-and-present-danger to U.S. national security.
In fact, just three days ago, ISIS said they would attack Florida.
H/t FOTM‘s Anon, maziel, Big Lug, and Hadenoughalready.
~Eowyn
