Omar Mateen

Mateen's widow, Noor Salman, was acquitted of material support and obstruction charges relating to preparations for the attack. The verdict provides an important clarification of the judicial aftermath concerning the hypothesis of knowing assistance from a family member.

Person targeted by the proceedings

Noor Salman

Role of the person profiled

Protagonist not prosecuted

His former wife, Sitora Yusufiy, stated after the 2016 attack that Mateen had hit her, isolated her from her family and controlled her finances during their brief marriage.

Mateen worked for G4S from 2007, and his security licences were renewed several times following background checks. G4S stated that its 2007 and 2013 checks had revealed no disqualifying conviction and that the company had been informed of the closure of the 2013 FBI investigation.

State of the evidence

Documented

Role of the person profiled

Protagonist not prosecuted

Mateen opened fire at Pulse, an LGBT nightclub in Orlando. The attack killed 49 people and injured 58 according to the FBI's current count, before Mateen was killed by law enforcement.

Attribution

Accused

During the attack, Mateen called 911 and pledged allegiance to Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi and Islamic State, while also referring to other attackers associated with organisations or movements that were sometimes mutually incompatible. The FBI classified the attack as an act of terrorism.

Attribution

Personally implicated

Following reports from colleagues, the FBI opened a preliminary investigation, interviewed Mateen twice, used confidential sources and temporarily placed him in the Terrorist Screening Database. The investigation was closed after approximately ten months because insufficient evidence existed to continue it.

State of the evidence

Admitted by the person

Mateen's name reappeared in a 2014 investigation because of his casual acquaintance with Moner Mohammad Abu Salha, a Florida resident who became a suicide bomber in Syria. The FBI reassessed the connection and identified no substantial relationship or threat warranting action.

State of the evidence

Confirmed

Colleagues at the courthouse where Mateen worked as a security guard reported inflammatory statements, including claims of family ties to Al-Qaeda and membership of Hezbollah. The FBI described these statements as contradictory.

State of the evidence

Admitted by the person

Attribution

Personally implicated

Mateen was dismissed from correctional officer training after absences, episodes of sleeping in class or at the shooting range and asking a fellow trainee whether he would report Mateen if he brought a gun to class, just days after the Virginia Tech shooting.

State of the evidence

Documented

Attribution

Personally implicated

At 14, Mateen stated in later documents that he had been accused of battery following a fight in a mathematics class and sent to an alternative school.

State of the evidence

Documented