FBI director: Orlando gunman had been taken off watch list
- 8 years ago
FBI director James Comey confirmed during a briefing that the FBI had had previous contact with Mateen, whose comments to coworkers at a local courthouse about terrorism prompted a 10-month preliminary investigation beginning in May 2013.
As part of the investigation, Omar Mateen, who was killed in a shootout with police on Sunday morning, was placed on a terrorism watch list and interviewed twice before the probe was closed in March 2014 because agents concluded he was not a threat.
President Obama said Monday that the gunman appeared to be motivated by extremist propaganda online, while saying that investigators delving into the attacker’s background have not found any communication linking him with radical groups.
As part of the investigation, Omar Mateen, who was killed in a shootout with police on Sunday morning, was placed on a terrorism watch list and interviewed twice before the probe was closed in March 2014 because agents concluded he was not a threat.
President Obama said Monday that the gunman appeared to be motivated by extremist propaganda online, while saying that investigators delving into the attacker’s background have not found any communication linking him with radical groups.