“I couldn’t believe that was my son,” Seddique Mateen told ABC. “He had a lot of love and care, and I couldn’t believe that this is what he was doing. If he was alive, I would ask him one question, ‘Why?’”
He added that his son was not an Islamic extremist, and he saw him on Saturday afternoon---just hours before the massacre. “It makes me upset, it makes me mad that I didn’t see anything unusual,” he said.
Another person who knew him, childhood friend Sean Chagani described Mateen as “different” and shy, noting: “It’s kind of hard to define.”
“Was he violent? By no means was he a violent person. By no means did he express violent tendencies or any aggression in any way,” Chagani told the network. “I guess everyone is a little bit different or quirky or unique. Omar was just different. I just don’t know how to put it.”
The FBI launched an investigation against him---one in 2013, and another in 2014---but authorities eventually cleared him for a concealed weapons carry permit in Florida as he worked for a security guard for G4S until this weekend, the Post reported.
John Kenning, G4S regional chief executive for North America, also sent out a statement following the attack: “We are cooperating fully with all law enforcement authorities, including the FBI, as they conduct their investigation. Our thoughts and prayers are with all of the friends, families and people affected by this unspeakable tragedy.”
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