Wild conspiracy theories. In the wake of a national tragedy. Nightly news from orlando starts right now. Announcer terror in orlando, this is nbc nightly news with lester holt. Reporting tonight from orlando. Good evening. First, the shock and now the soulsearching questions. Tonight we now know virtually minute by minute how a single gunman perpetrated the deadliest shooting in American History and about the three phone calls between the terrorists and a 911 operator during the siege. The questions focus on how a man previously investigated by the fbi over jihadist sympathies still managed to slip below the radar, to buy guns and commit this hideous attack. And there are questions about the police response, and the timing of their assault. A day of rapid developments about the killer, his motivations, the victims, and those they leave behind. And we begin our expanded coverage with nbcs miguel reporter tonight new images inside pulse. The gay nightclub during its popular last night. Music, dancing and then gunfire. Amanda captured the shooting is among the dead. Today survivors in new detail describing the scene of terror. Gunshots to the head, legs, arms, shoulders, stomach, back. I could smell the ammo in the air and i said this is a gun. Its an awful experience. Oh, my god people are getting shot. Reporter at 2 00 a. M. An offduty officer engages with mateen, armed with an Assault Rifle like this, a handgun and plenty of ammunition. Nbc news has learned from authorities that the engaging officer retreated, backup arrived in two minutes. The injured pouring out. But others like Eddie Justice trapped inside. You. A team of responding officers then engages mateen in another gun fight forcing him to retreat into one of the clubs four bathrooms where he takes four to five hostages. Another 15 people are hiding in a nearby restroom. Dozens make a break for it, running for their lives. Now a standoff from the bathroom. Three 911 calls. Mateen said to be calm, pledges allegiance to isis twice and then calls the tsarnaev brothers his home boys. Retreat into the rear bathroom with the door shut. Thats where we had to barricade changed from an active shooter to a barricaded gunman hot damage situation. Reporter Eddie Justice texts his mom again. Hes coming, im going to die. Police decide to storm the building. Breaks the bathroom wall where mateen is hunkered down. According to survivors, at some point mateen hid among the dead to hide from police. Soon after a hail of gunfire, he shoots one officer in the head. The 29yearold suspect is finally killed. Inside the club, 38 victims are dead. Nine more would die on their way to or at the hospital. Two bodies were found on the street. A night of celebration ending in terror. The deadliest mass shooting in u. S. History. Tonight Police Confirm they are investigating if any of the victims were accidently shot by the 14 officers who opened fire. The police chief said he had no choice, his officers had to storm the building. As for the detective inside the crime scene, they describe it as the most horrific scene they have ever seen. Lester, hours after many people were killed, they say their cell phones were ringing, likely family members trying to reach them hoping t so eerie and sad. We saw the police still going through parking lots looking for evidence in the street. We are learning so much more about those killed and injured in this attack. Nearly all the 49 people who were murdered have now been identified. Many survivors still in the hospital this evening. We get more on the lives lost from nbcs gabe gutierrez. Reporter at a nightclub called pulse, they were full of life. 49 people, young, vibrant, dancing. 25yearold amanda posted this haunting snapchat video. Luis was just 22 and worked at harry potter universal studio. They said he was shot twice. Reporter this mans son survived and is telling a chilling story of the gunman coming back to the slaughter. Shooting people on the ground. To make sure they were dead. Reporter so many more killed, whose stories w j shane graduated from either carolina university, where singing was his passion. Kimberly morris was a Cell Phone Store manager, with an independent streak. Eric rivera had moved to florida from puerto rico and sacrificed a lot for his family. Edward sotomayor worked for a travel company. Brenda mccool had beaten cancer, twice. Peter gonzalezcruz was always the life of the party. Eddie justice was trapped in the bathroom during the rampage. He texted me at 2 06 and said, mommy, i love you. In the club they are shooting. That was at 2 06. Trapped in the bathroom. Downtown. Police call police. Im going to die. Reporter yet among the carnage, stories of hope. Keenan carter was shot three times. Youve got to wake up, youve got to come out of this. Reporter his sister even says doctors told the family hed passed away. I said, do you hear me . He was like he and i was like, i see this. You see whats going on. It was just like a miracle. Just like right before my eyes. Reporter after three surgeries, the family gathered in prayer. This morning, they were told a fourth operation stopped the blood loss. Though carter is still in critical condition. Hes a fighter. Reporter tonight orlando, a Community Just miles from the happiest place on earth, is coping with unimaginable sadness. A vigil honoring the victims is set to begin later tonight. 29 patients are being treated, 5 of them are in grave condition. The surgeries are ongoing. As family members anxiously wait. Lester. All right. Gabe gutierrez, thank you. Tonight, there are growing questions about how a man investigated by the fbi and put on a terror watch list could legally purchase the guns used to massacre so many innocent people. As our justice correspondent, pete williams, reports the i notify investigators when that purchase was made. The fbi director says agents thoroughly investigated omar mateen, beginning in may 2013, while working as a Security Guard the fbi says he told coworkers he had family connections with al qaeda and he himself was part of the terror group hezbollah. He was put under surveillance, and they interviewed him twice. Conclusion . He made it all up. A few months later, the fbi questioned him again about going to the same mosque as another ft. Pierce man who later became a suicide bomber in syria. Their contact, the fbi determined, was minimal. Again, case closed. The fbi director said he doesnt believe agents missed any sign that mateen would later become a terrorist. We are looking for needles in a nationwide haystack. But were also called upon to fure out might some day become needles. That is hard work. If we can find a way to do that better, we will. Reporter during the ten months mateen was under investigation, his name was on a terror watch list. If he had tried to buy a gun then, the fbi would have been notified. But not after the case was closed. A former top atf official says the system should be changed, to send an alert when anyone who has ever been investigated for terrorism goes to buy a gun. If something changed and a neighbor k5u8d you and said he was coming in with large barrels of chemicals, that would be a trip wire that you would want to act on. The same could be true if a person was trying to buy assault weapons and large amounts of ammunition. Reporter a little over a week ago, mateen went to this gun store and bought two weapons, like these, legal purchases the store owner says. Unfortunately hes evil. We happen to be the gun store he picked. Theres nothing else i can say. Reporter mateens cell phone cover in blood, and other are now being analyzed by the fbi lab in virginia. Tonight investigators say theyre also questioning mateens relatives. Fbi wants to know if anyone knows what he was up to and failed to Say Something about it. Agents are also checking out claims from some in orlandos Gay Community who say mateen sent them messages on a gay dating app. Lester . A lot of dots to be connected. Pete, thank you. The shooter raised a number of red flags over the years for those who came into contact with him, including a former coworker who said the shooter had anger issues and requested a transfer to get away from him. Tonight our Stephanie Gosk talks to a former classmate of the shooter who says he exhibited disturbing behavior as far back as 9 11. Reporter photos of gunman omar mateens condominium show a snapshot of what appears to be a happy family. But people who knew [000 10 58;00] an unpredictable, angry man, who showed support for violent extremism for years. A description his mother told nbcs Kerry Sanders she doesnt recognize. Did you know that your son could do this . No, never. Reporter they spoke with former classmates who declined to talk on camera. They said mateen made light of 9 11, immediately following the attack. On 9 11, he was getting on the bus, making plane sounds, acting like he was a plane holding his arms out. Reporter more recently, two people who knew him well, his exwife and former colleague had strikingly similar impressions. Both describe mateens violent outbursts. He would get mad out of nowhere. Thats when i started worrying about my safety, and then after a few months he started abusing me physically. He would kick things and throw things and slam his hands down and have a violent outburst of rage. Reporter former Police Officer mateen at this gated community in putt st. Lucie. Did he talk about things that made you uncomfortable. Yes, always. He always referred to every other race, religion, gender, in a very derogatory negative way. Reporter he even referred to them threateningly. He said so many times, i want to kill all these ns, im going to kill all these ns. He said that all the time. Referring to black people. Reporter gilroy reported mateen to supervisors. But when mateen harassed him, gilroy quit. Now he says he wishes he had done more. I feel responsible. I felt like because i was a coward, 50 people are dead. Thats the way i feel. Reporter Law Enforcement wrapped up its search here at omar mateens condominium. Residents have been allowed to move back into their homes. Tonight theyre coming to terms with the fact that their neighbor mateen lived here with his wife and 3yearold son. Tonight theyre staying with his parents. Lester . Stephanie gosk tonight, thank you. There is much more still ahead tonight from orlando, including the new political firestorm erupting over this attack, as the 2016 candidates come out swinging in wildly different ways. Was donald trump implying that president obama is a te fight heartburn fast. With tums chewy delights. The mouthwatering soft chew that goes to work in seconds to conquer heartburn fast. Tum tum tum tum. Chewy delights. Only from tums. I am totally blind. I lost my sight in afghanistan. If youre totally blind, you may also be struggling with non24. Calling 8448442424. Or visit my24info. Com. The call just came in. Shes about to arrive. And with her, a flood of potential patients. Rays, mris. All on account. Of penelope. But with the help of at t, and a network that scales up and down ondemand, this hospital can be ready. Giving them the agility to be flexible reliable. Because no one knows like at t. From orlando with the fallout from the terror attack reverberating on the campaign trail. Most notably, donald trump this morning making wild accusations, not so subtly suggesting that president obama doesnt want to stop terrorists. Implying something sinister. Nbcs Andrea Mitchell now in a new firestorm brewing. Reporter on a day when donald trump stands accused of exploiting the orlando tragedy to advance his campaign, he ripped into Hillary Clinton and president obama, blaming them for terrorism. The bottom line is that hillary supports policies that bring the threat of radical islam into america and allow it to grow overseas. Reporter today repeatedly insinuating that president obama is somehow complicit with terrorists. He doesnt get it. Or gets it better than anyone understands. Either one is unacceptable. Reporter when pressed by Savannah Guthrie on today a lot of people think maybe he doesnt want to know a he doesnt know what theyre doing. He doesnt want to see whats really happening. Reporter the white house saying the president s record speaks for itself. The record includes a lot of dead terrorists. Reporter trump also challenged by guthrie for tweeting on the day of the shooting, congr congratulated for being right on terrorists. You were focused on yourself and giving yourself congratulations. What do you say about that . Ive been receiving tens of thousands of tweets. Reporter nbc found only four tweets congratulating him, not tens of thousands. Trump undeterred by criticism of his muslim ban today pledging an even broader crackdown. I will suspend immigration from areas of the world where there is a proven history of terrorism against the united states. , europe, or our allies. Reporter clinton giving a sober expression. Watching you, for suspected terrorist links, you shouldnt be able to just go buy a gun with no questions asked. Reporter the candidates sharpest exchanges yet over terrorism, explaining dramatic differences in the way they respond over a national tragedy. Andrea mitchell, nbc news, cleveland. We are back in a moment with a mother whose search for answers has gripped before it became a medicine, it was an idea. An inspiration. A wild whatif. So scientists went to work. 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For pain relief that can last into the morning. Look up at a new day. Hey guys now im back. Aleve pm for a better am. All day today, families came and went from a center set up on their behalf a few blocks from here. Some emerged in tears, others with look of k. Some cases received news of the fate of loved ones who were inside the nightclub. One of them is a mother of a 32yearold man whose search for answers has touched so many of us. Since early yesterday, the nation has shared christines anguish. I dont know where my son is. No one can tell me where my son is. If hes been shot, if hes dead. Reporter a mother searching for her son. Phone calls, trips to the hospital, and visits with police yielded no answers about christopher, her only child. Neither did her emotional public pleas. He would be identifiable. I have his photo. Hes very identifiable. Reporter finally today, three hours after her appearance on today, and more than 30 hours after the shooting began, a florida policeman gave her the news she had been dreading. He said, your son is dead. Just like that. Just like that. He never made it to th thats what they said. Reporter exhausted, and emotionally wrought, a former michigan Police Officer said shes more angry than sad. Angry at the bureaucracy, and angry that police waited hours before sending the s. W. A. T. Team in. If i had known that my son was in the club, laying on the floor, i would have gone in myself and brought him on my back and carried him the two blocks to the trauma center. Reporter christopher was 32. He worked in insurance in orlando, and was active in lgbt issues. He has been the easiest kid in the whole world. Reporter memories that come flooding back as she shares his baby pictures with me. Have you accepted that hes gone . Well, i had accepted it before. My heart wanted him to be alive in my heart. Christopher was in the club with his boyfriend who was shot, and made it to the hospital. But he later died. When we come back, some final thoughts in the latest american my bladder leakage made me feel like i couldnt be the father that i wanted to be. My kids see me as this rock of the family and a part of me felt like i became less of that hero to them but with depend, i have none of those concerns anymore. I can go all out. Theres no restriction in my movement. Its liberating and sloan is back. Unlike the bargain brand, new depend fitflex underwear is now more flexible to move with you. Reconnect with the life youve been missing. Get a free sample at depend. Com. Reconnect with the life youve been missing. Ive been blind since birth. I go through periods where its hard to sleep at night, and stay awake during the day. Learn about non24 by calling 8448442424. Or visit my24info. Com. Jake reese, day to feel alive jake reese, day to feel alive jake reese, day to feel alive hi mom. Grandma oh joey run and get a cookie, ok . Let me see it today. This is what it can be like to have shingles. A painful blistering rash. Oh mom. If you had chickenpox the shingles virus is already inside you. One in three people will get shingles in their lifetime. Grandma, want to play . Maybe later sweetie. Talk to your doctor or pharmacist today about a vaccine that can help prevent shingles. That is going to do it for us on this monday night. For some, nightly news will continue with another half hour of coverage. Im lester holt. For all of us at nbc news, we thank you for watching. And we want to leave you now with the names of the 48 victims identified so far in the terror attack here. Terror in orlando. This is nbc nightly news with lester holt, reporting tonight from orlando. Were back with more of our continuing coverage of the terror attack at a gay nightclub here in orlando. Now the deadliest mass shooting in American History. 49 people were killed by the attacker, 53 others were injured. There are so many new questions about how a man who was once on a terrorist watch list who was interviewed multiple times by the fbi was still able to buy guns and carry out this atrocity. Also under scrutiny, the police response, and whether officers should have stormed
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