Orlando shooter exchanged messages with wife during assault

Miami, June 18: Omar Seddique Mateen, perpetrator of a mass shooting at a gay nightclub in Orlando, Florida, that left 50 people dead, including the attacker, and 53 wounded, exchanged text messages with his wife, Noor Zahi Salman, throughout the assault, local media reported on Friday.

Apparently, Salman's mother called her daughter around 2:00 a.m. local time on Sunday, woke her up and asked if she knew where Mateen was, Efe news cited a report by NBC News channel.

Salman said she did not, and went on to text her husband and ask where he was, to which Mateen answered, "Do you see what's happening?"

His wife said "No", and Mateen replied, "I love you, babe".

Around 2:00 a.m. Mateen started his indiscriminate shooting in the gay club Pulse, which was celebrating "Latin Night".

But apparently that was not the shooter's only use of the telephone during the massacre. He also communicated with News 13 television and asked a producer if he knew anything about the shooting, and when the man said he did, Mateen said, "I am the shooter. It's me."

"I did it for the Islamic State (IS)," the killer said, according to producer Matthew Gentili.

Mateen also used his mobile phone during the massacre to access Facebook, where he published messages blaming the United States for the death of "innocent women and children", and demanded that the US stop bombing territory controlled by the IS.

During his conversations with police negotiators, Mateen also declared his loyalty to the terrorist group.

While holed up at Pulse, he also used Facebook to find out what impact the massacre was having by using the search words "Pulse Orlando" and "shooting".

IANS