The Orlando night club shooter suspected for killing at least 50 people and injuring more than 53 others has been identified as Omar Seddique Mateen. Here's what we know about him so far. Mateen, 29, was a US citizen of Afghan descent from Port St. Lucie, Florida, according to CBS News. The report also suggested that he had ties to radical Islamic ideology. His name was confirmed by Congressman Alan Grayson at a press conference yesterday. Mateen pledged allegiance to Daesh in 911 call Omar Mateen called 911 just before the shooting and pledged allegiance to Daesh leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, NBC News reports. He also mentioned the Tsarnaev brothers, who carried out the Boston Marathon bombing, during the call, CBS News reports. Daesh issued a statement calling Mateen an "Islamic state fighter." Read the full statement here. Mateen physically abused his ex-wife Mateen's former wife Sitora Yusufiy, described him as emotionally and mentally disturbed with a violent temper. She said she had been beaten and otherwise physically abused by Mateen during outbursts in which he would "express hatred towards everything". She was "rescued" by family members just four months into a stormy marriage that began in 2009 and ended in divorce, she said. He was on the FBI's radar but was deemed a "non-threat" According to Ron Hopper, head of the FBI in Orlando, his office first became aware of Mateen in 2013, when he made "inflammatory comments" to co-workers alleging possible "terrorist ties". In that incident, the FBI interviewed Mateen twice, and carried out separate interviews with other witnesses, as well as physical surveillance and checks on his records. "Ultimately, we were unable to verify the substance of his comments, and the investigation was closed," Hopper said. In 2014, authorities interrogated Mateen again for "possible ties" to an American suicide bomber, Moner Mohammad Abusalha, who appeared in an al-Nusra Front video in Syria. Hopper said the FBI determined that Mateen's contact with Abusalha "was minimal and did not constitute a substantive relationship or threat at that time". Following those "inconclusive" findings, both investigations on Mateen were closed. Mateen worked for a security agency and was a trained gun operator Al Jazeera's reported that Mateen worked as a security guard. In order to get the job, gun laws required Mateen to train with weapons, including fulfilling the required eight hours on a shooting range. In a statement sent to the Palm Beach Post, security company G4S confirmed his employment.
Omar Mateen worked as a security guard in Fort Pierce, Fla. He rented a car and traveled to Orlando to carry out #PulseNightclubShooting - Evan Pérez (@evanperez) June 12, 2016
Suspect's father adamant that shooting had nothing to do with religion The suspect's father, told NBC News on Sunday that his son had recently expressed anti-gay sentiments and had become angry when he saw two men kissing a few months ago in Miami. He said the attack "had nothing to do with religion."
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