ORLANDO, Fla., June 20 (UPI) — The FBI on Monday released redacted transcripts of the 911 emergency calls Pulse nightclub shooter Omar Mateen made during the Orlando massacre.
“Emergency 911, this is being recorded,” an emergency dispatch operator said during one of the conversations in the early hours of June 12.
“In the name of God the Merciful, the beneficial,” Mateen said before speaking in Arabic.
“What?” the dispatch operator responded.
“Praise be to God, and prayers as well as peace be upon the prophet of God,” Mateen said before once again speaking in Arabic. “I let you know, I’m in Orlando and I did the shootings.”
“What’s your name?” the dispatcher said.
“My name is I pledge allegiance to [omitted],” Mateen replied.
“OK, What’s your name?” the dispatcher asked again.
“I pledge allegiance to [omitted] may God protect him [in Arabic], on behalf of [omitted],” Mateen said.
“All right, where are you at?” the dispatcher asked.
“In Orlando,” Mateen replied.
“Where in Orlando?” the dispatcher said, before the call ended.
During calls held later with crisis negotiation teams, Mateen identified himself as an Islamic soldier. He told the negotiator to “tell America to stop bombing Syria and Iraq” — which were the reason he was carrying out the attack, according to an FBI description of the calls.
“When the crisis negotiator asked the shooter what he had done, the shooter stated, ‘No, you already know what I did,'” the FBI wrote.
“The shooter continued, stating, ‘There is some vehicle outside that has some bombs, just to let you know. You people are gonna get it, and I’m gonna ignite it if they try to do anything stupid.'”
Mateen later told police he wore a vest like the kind they “used in France” — referring to the November Islamic State attacks in Paris in which militants used explosive vests to detonate and kill dozens of people.
“The shooter later stated, ‘In the next few days, you’re going to see more of this type of action going on,'” the FBI wrote. “The shooter hung up and multiple attempts to get in touch with him were unsuccessful.”
The FBI during a press conference on Monday said it redacted parts of Mateen’s conversations with the 911 dispatcher to prevent the spreading of his violent rhetoric that could possibly influence others. Mateen carried out an attack in which 49 people died and more than 50 were injured inside the gay nightclub.
