Omar Mir Seddique Mateen is the name of the Orlando shooter who killed 50 people in the Pulse Orlando gay nightclub. According to Heavy , Omar Mateen exchanged gunfire with police outside of Pulse Orlando at approximately 2 a.m. before entering Pulse Orlando and taking hostages. Update : Mir Seddique is Mateen’s father.
Responsible for Orlando Mass Killing-Omar Mateen Terrorist Was 29-Year-Old Islamic Radical (PHOTO) https://t.co/djUuKnAXZL via @TMZ
— Lisa Campbell (@LisaCampbell102) June 12, 2016
Update: TMZ has released photos of Mateen .
JUST IN: Omar Mateen was on law enforcement radar in last five years, @jeffpeguescbs reports https://t.co/yjXjCLx2Hm pic.twitter.com/Wm5aamNN4v
— CBS News (@CBSNews) June 12, 2016
Already on social media, the purported photos of Mateen being published are not ones that have yet been verified by police.
LATEST: Suspected Orlando nightclub shooter identified as 29-year-old Omar Mateen. https://t.co/c00wgZnayG pic.twitter.com/w4b8NLkSQa
— Good Morning America (@GMA) June 12, 2016
According to the below tweet from CBS News, Omar had no history of criminal activity before his attack on the Pulse Orlando nightclub.
MORE: Omar Mateen, ID’d as Orlando shooter, had no apparent criminal history, sources say https://t.co/VoBvbAa9yy pic.twitter.com/S7tcmALHg1
— CBS News (@CBSNews) June 12, 2016
Mateen was reportedly using a handgun, coupled with an assault-type rifle and a device — according to police — in order to exact what seemed to be a well-planned execution of Pulse Orlando patrons.
#PrayForFlorida Pulse Nightclub Shooter Identified As Omar Mateen https://t.co/55eB0dxhKU pic.twitter.com/11Xva5zGDM
— Bossip (@Bossip) June 12, 2016
Authorities are calling Mateen a “lone wolf” shooter whose motive is not fully known at this time.
‘Suspected Islamic extremist’ Omar Mateen, 29, killed at least 50 people inside Orlando club https://t.co/Rq5Xn7nhb8 pic.twitter.com/j1lGYWXkHN
— Daily Mail US (@DailyMail) June 12, 2016
According to a Florida voters website, Mateen was a 29-year-old man who would have turned 30 years of age on November 16, 2016, had Omar lived. The website claims that Omar was a registered Democrat whose race was listed as “other” when Mateen registered to vote on July 19, 2006. According to those records, Omar would have been 19 years of age when he registered to vote.
“OMAR MIR SEDDIQUE MATEEN was born 16 November 1986 and he lives (or lived)…in FORT PIERCE, St. Lucie County, Florida, U.S.A. His voter ID number is 114484524. He registered to vote 19 July 2006 and he is registered in the Florida Democratic Party. He is listed as Other (race).”
Thus far, a search on Google Images for photos of the full name of Mateen and Omar’s partial name reveals photos being attributed to an Omar Mir Seddique Mateen. Websites that show up therein claim to have Mateen’s Facebook, MySpace, and Twitter profile photos — although these photos have not yet been confirmed by police as belonging to Omar, the Orlando shooter.
Gunfire exchanged at #pulse nightclub hostage situation in #Orlando . pic.twitter.com/qeF0s6Ien6
— Nic Hornstein (@nichornstein) June 12, 2016
Mateen was finally killed at approximately 5 a.m. after Omar barricaded himself inside the Pulse Orlando club. As seen in the above video, gunfire can be heard during the melee. The top photo above shows police cars that responded to the scene of the Pulse Orlando club.
Reaction to Omar’s name being released as the Orlando shooter is being buzzed about on social media.
As a result of the tragedy, Orlando is the top trending Twitter item, with more than 517,000 tweets about the city. The violence has also caused #GunControlNow to become a popular hashtag, with more than 11,000 tweets about the term flowing into Twitter.
Other popular hashtags that have emerged on Twitter in the wake of the attack from Mateen include the label #MassShooting , which has gained more than 3,200 tweets in a short period of time. Also trending is the word Muslims , along with O Negative , because of the blood types that folks are being urged to donate in the wake of the mass shootings, including other much needed blood types.
NEW: “Urgent need” for O negative, O postive and AB plasma blood donors in central Florida https://t.co/PGQCtS61q9 pic.twitter.com/8U4CG0YBVT
— CBSN (@CBSNLive) June 12, 2016
Whether Omar had Jihadist leanings or ties to ISIS is being investigated, reports Heavy , even if ISIS has not claimed responsibility for the attacks at the Pulse Orlando club at this time.
On the Pulse Orlando Facebook page, requests for prayers and information about forthcoming data has been posted.
“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.”
Witnesses to the shooting have also posted comments. Facebook user Ricardo J. Negron Almodovar wrote the following.
“I was there. Shooter opened fire @ around 2:00am. People on the dance floor and bar got down on the floor and some of us who were near the bar and back exit managed to go out through the outdoor area and just ran. I am safely home and hoping everyone gets home safely as well.”
[Photo by AP Photo/Phelan M. Ebenhack]