Wife of Orlando Pulse shooter knew of his plans to attack club
Noor Salman with husband Omar Mateen
According to new evidence, the wife of the shooter in the Orlando Pulse massacre knew that he had been planning the shooting.
Noor Salman, the wife of shooter Omar Mateen, previously pleaded not guilty to providing material support to a terrorist and tampering with evidence.
But according to a statement given to the FBI hours after the shooting in which 49 people were killed and dozens more injured, Salman knew of Mateen’s plans.
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Salman says in the statement given on 12 June 2016 that Mateen was upset by the treatment of Muslims in the Middle East and that he planned a retaliation against Americans.
USA Today reported the statement which contradicts Salman’s claims that she knew nothing of the plans to attack the Pulse nightclub.
It also contradicts her attorney’s defence that she did not know of the attack.
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Her attorneys also argued that she had suffered from PTSD from years of being raped and beaten by Mateen.
She told the FBI: “My fears had come true and he did what he said he was going to do. I was in denial and I could not believe that the father of my child was going to hurt other people.”
Going on she says that she saw a gun in Mateen’s car along with ammuniton and that he had been looking at different nightclubs in Orlando.
When he found Pulse, he told her: “This is my target”.
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“I knew when he left the house he was going to Orlando to attack the Pulse nightclub,” Salman said in the statement.
49 people were shot dead and 53 were wounded at Pulse nightclub in Orlando on 12 June 2016.
911 recordings later revealed that the gunman had pledged allegiance to the Islamist terrorist group known as ISIS.
The city of Orlando last year marked the first anniversary of the attack.
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One year on, the local community marked the event with a Day of Love and Kindness, with events held across Orlando to remember those who perished in the attack.
Orlando Mayor Bobby Dyer said at the time: “June 12 was the darkest day in our City’s history and a day that will forever be reserved to honour the memory of the 49 innocent lives taken from us too soon.
“This tragedy has deeply impacted our LGBTQ+, Latinx, other communities of colour and our entire City.
“Since the morning of June 12, 2016, we have come together to honor the victims, support their families and the survivors and thank our first responders in so many ways.
He added: “Following the Pulse tragedy, we showed the world that Orlando would not be defined by the act of a hate-filled killer, but instead defined by our response of love, compassion and unity.”
“I am so proud that we are Orlando United.”
