Deadliest mass shooting in recent US history; lone gunman shot dead hours after a ‘hostage situation’ inside gay nightclub
(From Orlando Sentinel)
A lone gunman armed with a pistol and an assault rifle killed 50 people and injured 53 more at a gay Orlando nightclub early Sunday in one of the deadliest mass shootings in American history.
Federal and local authorities are investigating the massacre as a possible terrorist attack and say the gunman may have ties to extremist Islamic ideologies. The man, whom officials have identified as 29-year-old Omar Mateen of Port St. Lucie, was killed after a shootout with Orlando police.
Police Chief John Mina said Mateen fired the first shot about 2:02 a.m. at an Orlando police officer and then ran into the club, which held more than 200 people. Details about exactly what happened inside the club were unclear, but police said it became a hostage situation. Read More