This article is from the source 'independent' and was first published or seen on . It last changed over 40 days ago and won't be checked again for changes.
You can find the current article at its original source at http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/omar-mateen-orlando-gay-club-shooter-identified-by-police-us-media-a7077936.html
The article has changed 9 times. There is an RSS feed of changes available.
| Version 0 | Version 1 |
|---|---|
| Omar Mateen: Orlando gay club shooter identified by police - US media | Omar Mateen: Orlando gay club shooter identified by police - US media |
| (35 minutes later) | |
| Police sources have identified the gunman in the mass shooting at a gay club in Florida as 29-year-old Omar Mateen, an American citizen whose parents are from Afghanistan, according to US media reports. | |
| Authorities in Orlando said they were investigating the shooting, which killed at least 20 people and wounded 42 others, as an act of terrorism. | |
| The gunman was killed in a shootout with armed officers at around 5am on Sunday morning, US time. He was armed with an assault-type rifle, a handgun and some sort of "suspicious device", police said. | |
| Orlando police chief John Mina said the suspect exchanged gunfire with an officer working at the Pulse club at around 2am, before going inside and taking hostages among the more than 300 people at the club. | |
| Police have not determined an exact number of casualties, but Mina said "approximately 20" bodies were inside the club. | |
| CBS News identified the suspect as Mateen, a US citizen with no apparent criminal record, according to law enforcement sources. ABC News reported he was on the police "radar", though not subject to an investigation. | |
| And according to The Washington Post, relatives helped officials identify Mateen as the shooter. He lived in Fort Pierce, Florida. | |
| Ron Hopper, the FBI agent in charge of the operation, when asked if the gunman had a connection to radical Islamic terrorism, Hopper said authorities "have suggestions that individual has leanings towards that". | |
| "This is an incident, as I see it, that we certainly classify as domestic terror incident," Orange County Sheriff Jerry Demings said. | |
| Barack Obama was briefed on the attack and has asked for regular updates on the investigation, the White House said. | |
| Pulse posted on its own Facebook page around 2 a.m.: "Everyone get out of pulse and keep running." Just before 6 a.m., the club posted an update: "As soon as we have any information, we will update everyone. Please keep everyone in your prayers as we work through this tragic event. Thank you for your thoughts and love." | |
| Local, state and federal agencies are all involved in the investigation. |