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CNN NEWSROOM

Mateen a Pulse Club Regular, At Disney Complex before Shooting; Horrifying Recollections for Orlando Attack Survivors; Shooter Radicalized Online, Trained in Firearms Use; Clinton, Trump Weigh in on Orlando Shooting; Orlando Openly Gay Mayor Talks Shooting, LGBTQ; French Call Murder of Police Officer, Partner a Terrorist Act. Aired 2-3a ET

Aired June 14, 2016 - 02:00   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.


(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[02:00:18] JOHN VAUSE, CNN ANCHOR: Hello, everybody. Thanks for being with us. We'd like to welcome our viewers in the United States and all around the world. I'm John Vause, in Orlando, where it's just gone 2:00 a.m. on Tuesday.

AMARA WALKER, CNN ANCHOR: And I'm Amara Walker, in Los Angeles.

Ahead this hour --

(HEADLINES)

VAUSE: But we begin with the latest on the investigation into the shooting rampage. All 49 of the people killed at the nightclub have now been identified. Another 53 were wounded. Five remain in grave condition.

"The Orlando Sentinel" reports some club regulars spotted the gunman there repeatedly before Sunday's shooting. And investigators say he spent several hours at a Disney World shopping center before the attack.

Pamela Brown has more details on what happened inside the club that night.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

AMANDA ALVEAR, KILLED AT PULSE NIGHTCLUB: I'm at the club.

(GUNFIRE)

PAMELA BROWN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): New video posted by a victim inside the nightclub the moment the shooter opened fire.

(GUNFIRE)

BROWN: Today, FBI Director James Comey said it's clear 29-year-old Omar Mateen was radicalized. But which terrorist group he was acting on behalf of remains a source of confusion to investigators after the gunman made reference to both ISIS and ISIS enemy al-Nusra Front in 911 calls during the shootout, even referencing American Abu Salha, who was fighting with al-Nusra Front in Syria when he blew himself up.

JAMES COMEY, FBI DIRECTOR: There were three different calls. He called and he hung up. He called again and spoke briefly with the dispatcher. And then he hung up. And then the dispatcher called him back again and they spoke briefly. So there were three total calls. There were strong indications of radicalization by this killer and of potential inspiration by foreign terrorist organizations.

BROWN: Authorities continue to sift through every aspect of the shooter's life, looking for any indication he was given direction by terrorist groups.

BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: At this stage we see no clear evidence that he was directed externally. Also at this stage there's no direct evidence that he was part of a larger plot.

BROWN: Just after 2:00 a.m. Sunday morning, as Pulse nightclub readies for closing, the shooter sprays a barrage of bullets into a crowd of more than 300 people. Witnesses believe the initial gunfire is part of the music.

CHRISTOPHER HANSEN, WITNESS: It was a bam, bam of bullets. And you think it's part of a song. And when I looked behind me and I noticed that it wasn't just a song, that there was bodies falling down. The guy next to me was shot. And that's when I dropped. And I made sure that I had to crawl my way out.

LUIS BURBANO, WITNESS: What we thought was gunshots as part of the music, four shots, ba, ba, ba, ba, but for some reason, it was different.

BROWN: An off-duty police officer working at the front entrance of the club engages in a gun battle, firing several rounds at the shooter. Additional officers respond and get into another firefight with the gunman, forcing him to retreat to the bathroom, where officials say he held several hostages.

(SIRENS)

(GUNFIRE)

BROWN: 5:00 a.m., a SWAT team uses an explosion and an armored vehicle to break through the wall of a different bathroom, rescuing dozens more people.

UNIDENTIFIED LAW ENFORCEMENT OFFICER: There was a breach. That was a breach.

BROWN: The gunman emerged from the same hole in the wall, firing on officers with a handgun and a long gun. He is killed in the battle.

HANSEN: All I saw was cops coming in, people rushing out and you could just hear the guns. That's all you heard was bang, bang, bang.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

VAUSE: Our thanks to Pamela Brown for that report.

Jessica Schneider is with us now live for more on the investigation.

And, Jessica, these reports that we're getting from the Orlando newspaper that, in fact, a gunman had been to this club on a number of occasions before the shooting, also word that he may have been using a gay dating app. That, coming from the "L.A. Times." It really it seems has taken this investigation into a different area.

JESSICA SCHNEIDER, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yeah. New details now emerging, John. In fact, accounts emerging that this gunman had frequented the Pulse nightclub in the months leading up to this horrific attack. In fact, four different people telling the "Orlando Sentinel" that they had seen him there numerous times in the months leading up. And in addition, Chris Callan is a performer at Pulse nightclub, and he told CNN's Anderson Cooper that he had in fact met Omar Mateen, that he had talked to him, that he seemed very friendly, and that he also seemed very comfortable at the club. So these are all details that investigators are look at, they're piecing it together to see compactly why the gunman may have been at this club, how much he may have frequented it, and looking into these accounts from people who say that he was, in fact, there on numerous occasions -- John?

[02:05:32] VAUSE: So, Jessica, on the one hand, you have these reports he went to that club on a regular basis almost, and then we also have the new information coming from the investigation into his social footprint, that he had actually been watching a lot of jihadist propaganda.

SCHNEIDER: Yeah. Investigators now turning in fact to his cell phone records. And interestingly and perhaps alarmingly, they found that Omar Mateen was in Orlando the day before this vicious attack. They actually traced his cell phone to someplace called Disney Springs. It's part of the Walt Disney World Complex. It used to be called Downtown Disney. It's actually an entertainment and shopping and diagnose complex. They say that he was there in the hours leading up to this attack. They do believe that he was there alone.

But they're working to piece all these details together from his cell phone to come up with a timeline as to exactly what his movements were in the hours and perhaps the days before the attack. They're also looking into his electronics, meaning his cell phones and his computers, and they're finding in his searches, his history of searches, he actually looked up a lot of ISIS propaganda. He looked at some of the videos of ISIS beheadings. And investigators also say that he looked at videos of the imam, the American imam, Anwar al Awlaki. And of course that American imam had gone to Yemen to join al Qaeda and he was actually killed by a drone strike in 2011. On Monday, FBI Director James Comey said that the gunman had, in fact, been at least partly radicalized online -- John?

VAUSE: 2:06 here in the morning, and Jessica Schneider live with the very latest. Jessica, thank you.

And of course, as this investigation progresses, we have to keep in mind that families are grieving for the 49 people who were gunned down inside that nightclub. The youngest victim just 19 years old.

Jake Tapper now has more on an evening that began with joy but ended in horror.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JAKE TAPPER, CNN CHIEF WASHINGTON CORRESPONDENT & CNN ANCHOR, THE LEAD (voice-over): Saturday night was going to be a night of friendship and fun for Pulse clientele, such as 34-year-old Edward Sotomayor Jr. and 25-year-old Amanda Alvear, capturing these moments on social media, not knowing those posts would be their last.

(GUNFIRE)

TAPPER: They are just two of the 49 victims killed in the terrorist rampage.

For survivors, horrifying recollections remain all too vivid.

UNIDENTIFIED WITNESS: People running, glasses are getting dropped. People were passion me. I'm getting covered in blood from other people.

HANSEN: It went with the beat almost until you heard just too many shots. It was just like bang, bang, bang.

BURBANO: There was about 20 to 30 people tried to push themselves through a very small cabinet-looking door.

TAPPER: Luis Burbano escaped with his friend never looking back at the murderer coming towards them.

BURBANO: I didn't even want to look back. Why? To look at them, that would be the last thing I see on my face, the last memory I have. That's not something I want to remember.

TAPPER: Club-goers hid from the terrorist in restrooms and dressing rooms, huddling together, hoping to survive.

MINA MOTHER OF EDDIE JUSTICE: He said he was going to die and he loved me. That's the last thing I heard.

TAPPER: Just after 2:00 a.m., Mina Justice received these texts from her son, Eddie. "Mommy, I love you. In club they shooting. Trapped in the bathroom." "Calling them now," she wrote back.

Messages from Eddie kept coming. "He has us and he's in here with us." And then, "I'm going to die."

Eddie's mother spoke to news crews as she waited outside for her son.

JUSTICE: I think something happened. I do.

TAPPER: Eddie Justice did not make it out alive.

The murdered range in age from 19 to 50, retail workers, accountants, bartenders, journalists, students. Bright futures extinguished in a hate-filled terrorist attack.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: You stole a lot of people away from their families.

TAPPER: Some club-goers were luckier, shot, but saved because of the fast work of others.

JOSH MCGILL, SHOOTING SURVIVOR & NURSING STUDENT: On the way to the hospital the officer had him lay on top of me, and I had to bear hug him.

TAPPER: Nursing student, Josh McGill, helped a man with multiple gunshot wounds outside the club, telling him what he needed to hear to stay calm.

MCGILL: I promise you, God's got this. You'll be OK. And I was scared. I was like, God, please don't let me break my promise.

TAPPER: As of now, that man is alive.

And the promise to overcome lives on as well.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We're standing up and we're fighting. That's all we can do. All we can do is fight.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

[02:10:16] VAUSE: Earlier, I spoke with Giovanni Nieves. And he was on his way to the Pulse nightclub. He changed his mind. He was tired. He went home. But five of his friends were murdered. I asked him if this international show of support has helped.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

GIOVANNI NIEVES, FRIEND OF SHOOTING VICTIMS: It does go to show that we as a community do become one. As a community we've only really had each other. We really haven't had the support from other communities like we have within ourselves and even throughout time if you really see it. We always cling to each other for help, and we become -- we come together. So it feels really good to see Australia, California, London --

VAUSE: Paris.

NIEVES: -- Paris come together and say, Orlando, we are with you in this. And it just shows.

VAUSE: Do you worry that people will move on and forget about the suffering that happened here? Maybe not this community, but elsewhere, especially around the United States.

NIEVES: I said earlier today that this is Orlando's 9/11. New York had their 9/11. This is our rendition of 9/11. And we will never forget. It's part of what I've been doing all day. I've got friends that can't make it to Orlando that they're in other cities, in Kissimmee and Miami, and they're mourning and grieving. I've taken it upon myself to put flowers at the memorial and be their representative saying, I'm here for you and I'm going to mourn with you.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

VAUSE: Of course, Amara, Giovanni, he's right. This is the second worst terrorist attack on U.S. soil, the worst since 9/11. And it will take a long time for this community to heal.

WALKER: Understandably, John.

We're going to take a short break from here. When we come back, federal investigators say the Orlando nightclub killer was radicalized online. We're going to tell you why they believe he may have been plotting this attack for some time. Stay with us.

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(SPORTS REPORT)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[02:16:28] VAUSE: Welcome back, everybody. I'm John Vause, live in Orlando. Just gone 2:16 here on a Tuesday morning. You're watching CNN's special coverage of the mass shooting at the Pulse nightclub.

And we're getting a look at video taken from inside that club as the gunfire started to erupt early Sunday morning.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

(GUNFIRE)

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VAUSE: The woman you saw there was 25-year-old Amanda Alvear, one of the 49 people killed.

Federal investigators are going through more than 100 leads, trying to figure out the gunman's motive. An official says he had multiple online searches for jihadist propaganda.

WALKER: The gunman also received extensive firearms training as a student at a law enforcement academy, according to two classmates and a former administrator.

Brian Todd has more now on what authorities are learning about the shooter.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BRIAN TODD, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Tonight, a portrait of a mass killer with a deadly mix of hate and radicalization.

COMEY: But we are highly confident that this killer was radicalized and at least in some part through the Internet.

TODD: FBI Director James Comey says the FBI first became aware of Omar Mateen in 2013, following reports of threats and inflammatory statements. And from that time to the night of the massacre Mateen gave vague and conflicting indications of allegiances to terrorist groups.

COMEY: First, he claimed family connections to al Qaeda. He also said he was a member of Hezbollah, which is a Shia terrorist organization that is a bitter enemy of the so-called Islamic State, ISIL. He said he hoped that law enforcement would raid his apartment and assault his wife and child so that he could martyr himself.

TODD: The FBI tracked Mateen, looking for terrorist connections, for 10 months before closing that case. Questions tonight whether Mateen should have been tracked more closely.

COMEY: We're also going to look hard at our own work to see whether there is something we should have done differently. So far the honest answer is I don't think so. I don't see anything in reviewing our work that our agents should have done differently.

TODD: Mateen was born in New York, the son of Afghan immigrants. He worked for nine years as a security officer at G4S Security, one of the world's largest private security companies. Investigators are looking into what led him to this horrible act. But all indications suggest preparation and premeditation for a mass killing.

(on camera): At this gun store in Jensen Beach, Florida, a manager who didn't want to go on camera told us in recent weeks Omar Mateen came here wanting to buy level-3 body armor. Experts say that's military grade, offering protection that police officers don't even get. The manager says they don't sell body armor of any kind and Mateen was out the door in about five minutes.

But a U.S. official briefed on the investigation tells CNN that suggests to investigators that Mateen might have been planning the attack for some time.

Do you know why he did what he did?

SADDIQUE MIR MATEEN, FATHER OF OMAR MATEEN: I'm not aware of at all. I wish -- I wish he was alive. I could ask him the same question that you have.

And I cannot -- I cannot tell you. Why? Why he did do such act, this is against the principle of me and the whole family.

TODD (voice-over): Though his father gave no concrete answers as to why, others who knew Mateen described him as unhinged, homophobic, and racist not.

His ex-wife described a brief and violent relationship to a mentally ill man whom she was only able to escape from through her family's help.

SITORA YUSUFIY, EX-WIFE OF OMAR MATEEN: There was definitely moments he'd express his intolerance to homosexuals. This was a sick person that was really confused and went crazy. TODD: This man says he worked with Mateen as a security guard.

[02:20:13] DANIEL GILROY, SECURITY GUARD: Said I hate all those "N"s and I wish I could kill them all.

TODD: Daniel Gilroy's claims could be independently verified. But he says he was so upset that he requested to be transferred and eventually quit the security company where they worked together.

GILROY: I saw it coming. I mean, everything. He told me he was going to do it. Besides the date and the location, he said he was going to kill a whole bunch of people.

TODD (on camera): Daniel Gilroy says he told their employer, G4S Secure Solutions, several times about Mateen's behavior and he says the company didn't do anything. A company official with knowledge of the situation tells CNN G4S was not aware of any other complains by employees, including Daniel Gilroy's claims, and the company says while he worked for them, Mateen went through two rigorous background checks.

Brian Todd, CNN, Fort Pierce, Florida.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WALKER: U.S. President Barack Obama will visit Orlando Thursday to pay respect to the victims of the mass shooting. On Sunday, Mr. Obama described the tragedy as a result of homegrown terrorism and, once again, escalated the call for gun control.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

OBAMA: As far as we can tell right now, this is certainly an example of the kind of homegrown extremism that all of us have been so concerned about for a very long time. It also appears that he was able to obtain these weapons legally because he did not have a criminal record that in some ways would prohibit him from purchasing these weapons.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VAUSE: Legal experts say it's pretty easy to buy a gun in Florida. Semi-automatic assault rivals are legal to buy in this state. Buyers must first pass a federal background check. That's conducted by the FBI, and it's required for all gun purchases from federally licensed dealers. Florida, like most U.S. states, does not conduct its own background checks. And there's no limit on magazine capacity in Florida. The state does, however, require a three-day waiting period for handgun purchases.

Joining us now is CNN law enforcement analyst, Cedric Alexander. He is also the public safety director of DeKalb County in Georgia.

Cedric, thanks for being with us.

We also learned today that Mateen, who was trained for about a month at a law enforcement academy, would he have been trained on the AR-15 at that time or it would be different weapons?

CEDRIC ALEXANDER, CNN LAW ENFORCEMENT ANALYST: Well, he very well could have. Many police departments across the country today are utilizing that type of weaponry as opposed to the old Remington 870 shotgun. So very possibly he could have been trained on that weapon.

VAUSE: When people say he was a security guard, it seems he had much more advanced training than, say, your average security guard, which is one reason why he was able to kill 49 people and wound 53 others.

ALEXANDER: Wouldn't have been that advanced. But certainly it would have equated to some type of structure training that would have made it much more comfortable for him to feel familiar with those types of weapons.

VAUSE: OK. We're also learning that inside that club he was cool, he was calm. At some point, he was smiling and laughing. What does that tell you about his state of mind?

ALEXANDER: You're probably dealing with someone who's very psychotic and someone who has really removed himself from any emotional contact with people whom he in his mind may have had a great dislike for, whether they were part of the LGBT community or whether they just were Americans. Clearly, he had a plan in mind and one that appears to have been full of hate. And that made him a very dangerous individual in terms of being able to go in, mix with people, carry on like anyone else would, leave, and then come back and end in such a dramatic and deadly way.

VAUSE: We're also being told that most of the victims, most of the people who were killed were killed in the early stages of what ended up being a three-hour-long siege. Is that fairly typical in this kind of situation?

ALEXANDER: Well, it varies. Certainly, it does vary. But anytime you are using such a high-powered weapon as an AR-15, it uses .223 rounds, which are high-velocity rounds, and of course, it's my understanding he had a small arms weapon as well --

VAUSE: A Glock, yeah.

ALEXANDER: -- a Glock, .9-millimeter. And at very close range can create some real threat, as we saw.

VAUSE: We're also being told from our source that's he attempted to buy level-3 body armor. Is that the same as the police have or is this --

ALEXANDER: That's more military grade. That's really more military grade type body armor. And that's just not going to be sold to anyone. But even your SWAT teams also have a much higher grade of body armor.

VAUSE: If he managed to get hold of that type of body armor, what would have happened here? ALEXANDER: The fight could have gone on longer, more lives could

have been lost, certainly, but he fight would gone on longer had he had that type of vest on him.

[02:25:22] VAUSE: OK, we're also being told his wife is cooperating with investigators here. Will she be of much help?

ALEXANDER: I think she will be. She'll be able to tell us a lot about him in terms of his -- any changes in his moods and personality over time, who were some of his associates, what were some of his habits from the time that they met, married and divorced or separated. So I think there's a lot of information that can be gathered from her in terms of helping us to determine who was this individual and what was the motivation behind this massive killing.

VAUSE: Quite often, in a situation like this, people wonder how is it that this woman could be living with this man who was planning this deadly rampage and not know anything about it. We're assuming that's the case here. Is it possible for someone like these lone-wolf attackers to carry out their plans completely separate to anybody else, without anybody picking up on it?

ALEXANDER: Well, it could be. It could be. But oftentimes, as you get deeper into these investigations, each one is going to be very different. If we go back and look at the San Bernardino killing, we found there were others that were involved. If you look at this case, what we know right now about Mr. Mateen, he could have been operating as a lone wolf. It's still very early into this investigation. But over time, we're going to learn more about whether he was a lone wolf. Whether there were some others who knew about, took part, and had some knowledge of this act that took place.

VAUSE: One lead I guess the authorities are following up here is possible accomplices who may have been in the club that night, but still will work all of that out.

Cedric, thank you. Much appreciated.

ALEXANDER: That you for having me. Yes.

VAUSE: Our coverage continues in a moment with a harrowing account from a survivor who faced the gunman.

Also, the argument between Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton over radical Islam. Both have very different views on how to deal with terrorism.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[02:30:28] AMARA WALKER, CNN ANCHOR: Welcome, everyone. You're watching CNN's special coverage of the worst mass shooting in U.S. history. I'm Amara Walker, in Los Angeles.

JOHN VAUSE, CNN ANCHOR: I'm John Vause, live in Orlando, where it's just gone 2:30 on a Tuesday morning.

All 49 people killed inside the Pulse nightclub have now been identified. 53 others were wounded. Five are still in a grave condition. Investigators are learning more about the gunman. The FBI believes he was self-radicalized online. One official says the shooter searched for jihadist propaganda.

And a survivor has described the terrifying encounter with the gunman.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED ORLANDO SHOOTING SURVIVOR: The scary part was he didn't say anything. And what's scarier than that was when he shot the boy that was already shot he laughed. And as he's laughing, that's when he fires through the hole in front of the stall. Like just free firing.

We're yelling at him being like please, please don't do this, you don't want to do this, just spare us, we didn't see you, we can't tell anybody. I guess that enticed him more. And he put his gun over the top of the stall and just willy-nilly fired.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WALKER: Well, it didn't take along for the presumptive presidential nominees to weigh in on this attack. They have sharply different ideas on how to handle the threat of terrorism.

Sara Murray reports.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

SARA MURRAY, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): In the wake of the Orlando massacre, Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton are putting their commander-in-chief credentials on display.

HILLARY CLINTON, (D), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE & FORMER SECRETARY OF STATE: We are heading into a general election that could be the most consequential of our lifetimes. But today is not a day for politics.

MURRAY: And adopting starkly different tones.

DONALD TRUMP, (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE & CEO, TRUMP ORGANIZATION: She's in total denial. Hillary supports policies that bring the threat of radical Islam into America and allow it to grow overseas.

MURRAY: Clinton taking a more somber approach and laying out a plan to guard against terrorists who act alone.

CLINTON: As president, I will make identifying and stopping lone wolves a top priority.

MURRAY: While also promising tighter gun controls.

CLINTON: I believe weapons of war have no place on our streets.

MURRAY: And in a CNN interview, calling for the return of the assault weapons ban, first signed into law by her husband.

CLINTON (on camera): We did have an assault weapons ban for 10 years. And I think it should be reinstated.

MURRAY: All as Trump is railing against his political opponents, casting himself as tough on terror.

TRUMP: I refuse to be politically correct.

The days of deadly ignorance will end.

MURRAY: Though the Orlando shooter was an American citizen, born in New York, Trump misreading his speech appeared to suggest otherwise.

TRUMP: The killer, whose name I will not use or ever say, was born an Afghan of Afghan parents.

MURRAY: As he renews his call to ban Muslims from the U.S.

TRUMP: I will use this power to protect the American people. When I'm elected, I will suspend immigration from areas of the world where there is a proven history of terrorism against the United States.

MURRAY: Insisting an influx of Syrian refugees presents a danger to the country.

TRUMP (voice-over): We have to stop people from coming in from Syria. We're taking them in by the thousands.

MURRAY: In fact, less than 4,000 Syrians have been admitted this year. President Obama has called for resettling 10,000 by the end of September. After all his tough talk, Trump is still banking on cooperation from Muslim communities.

TRUMP (on camera): The Muslim communities, so importantly, they have to work with us. They have to cooperate with law enforcement. And turn in the people who they know are bad.

MURRAY: As Clinton argues, Trump's approach will only alienate Muslim allies. CLINTON: Inflammatory anti-Muslim rhetoric and threatening to

ban the families and friends of Muslim-Americans as well as millions of Muslim business people and tourists from entering our country hurts the vast majority of Muslims, who love freedom and hate terror.

MURRAY: Today, the presumptive Democratic nominee also negated one of Trump's loudest criticisms.

TRUMP: Hillary Clinton, for months, and despite so many attacks, repeatedly refused to even say the words "radical Islam."

MURRAY: Intentionally using those words.

CLINTON (voice-over): Whether you call it radical Jihadism, radical Islamism, I think they mean the same thing. I'm happy to say either.

MURRAY: As Trump embraces questionable semantics of his own, appearing to suggest President Obama sympathizes with Muslim extremists who've launched terrorist attacks.

TRUMP: We're led by a man that either is not tough, not smart, or he's got something else in mind.

[02:35:18] MURRAY: Now, the "Washington Post" is one of those news outlets that seized on the idea that Donald Trump says maybe Obama knows more than he's letting now about these terror attacks about Islamic extremism. Donald Trump did not appear to like that. He went on Facebook after this event saying he's going to be revoking the credentials from the "Washington Post."

CNN, Sara Murray, Manchester, New Hampshire.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

VAUSE: Patty Sheehan is Orlando's first openly gay commissioner. She joins us.

Patty, thank you for speaking with us and take the time.

First things first. All the dead have now been identified. Families are being notified. How are people coping with this?

PATTY SHEEHAN, CITY COMMISSIONER, ORLANDO, FLORIDA: Well, I just came back from a huge rally down at Orlando performing arts center. It was a really amazing time to bring the community together. I was frankly reluctant at first to do it because I was afraid of putting more people in peril and stretching thin law enforcement resources. But it was actually really, really wonderful. There were people from the Muslim community, people all over -- from all different walks of life. And it was just really affirming. There was a candlelight vigil. And I have to tell you, they were ringing a bell for every victim. And it was stunning.

VAUSE: Very moving.

SHEEHAN: It was very moving. And how long it took to ring that bell for every victim.

VAUSE: 49.

SHEEHAN: Yes.

VAUSE: Do you have any idea why the gunman, Mateen, would target the Pulse nightclub? Because we're now hearing from police sources that investigators are looking into the fact he may have been at this club on a number of different occasions before the shooting.

SHEEHAN: This is -- I'm just -- I'm incredulous. Although they do say a lot of times that people who have internal homophobia tend to act out against other gay people.

VAUSE: I guess that is one theory out there. This is a man struggling with his own sexuality possibly.

SHEEHAN: Yeah.

VAUSE: Clearly, what happened here, it's unprecedented. But for the gay community violence, it happens all too frequently.

SHEEHAN: You know, we have been -- we've lost -- aids decimated our community. We had a lot of death and lost people and had great suffering because of that. We've been victims of hate crimes. We've been the victims of discrimination. We have had to overcome a lot in this community. And I think because of that we have a resilience and a strength that a lot of communities don't have. When we get together that's why we can put together fabulous shows and things like, that and fabulous music because it's kind of our way of coping.

VAUSE: But you are going to need that strength in the coming days.

SHEEHAN: We do need that strength, absolutely.

VAUSE: One other issue, especially in states like Florida, there are laws on the books, anti-LGBT laws which are on the books and they continue to be passed, at least attempted to be passed. Florida never got through the transgender bathroom laws but the legislature tried. Is it about time that the lawmakers after what happened here maybe think about the discrimination --

(CROSSTALK)

SHEEHAN: I asked them to hold them accountable. I said if you want to come here and talk about violence against the gay community and say it's really not a gay thing yes, it is a gay thing. If you going to do hate crimes enhancements for crimes against my community? Are you going to protect my community? Are you going to protect accommodation and employment and housing at the state level like we do in Orlando? What are you going to do to help my community after this? And you know -- (CROSSTALK)

VAUSE: What do they say?

SHEEHAN: So far, well, you know, we love the gays. Yeah, right. No, you know what? You need to show that you need to put your money where your mouth is. If you're going to come here and stand in front of the cameras and talk about how you want to support the community, do it. It's not that difficult. It's not that difficult to do the right thing.

VAUSE: Patty, good to speak with you. Thank you.

SHEEHAN: Certainly.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

VAUSE: And still to come here, the shock of this deadly mass shooting is giving way to devastating reality for the friends and the family of the victims.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

LOPEZ, FRIEND DIED IN ORLANDO SHOOTING: I thought that he was immortal. He always said he would never abandon me. And I trusted him.

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[11:42:56] ANNOUNCER: This is CNN breaking news.

WALKER: We have some other breaking news to bring to you. France now says the murder of a French police officer and his partner was a terrorist act.

Let's get more on this from senior international correspondent, Jim Bittermann, joining us live now from Paris.

Hi there, Jim. What can you tell us about these killings?

JIM BITTERMANN, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Hi, Amara. In fact, the branding of it as a terrorist attack came from the interior minister a short while ago as he was heading out to the scene where all this took place last night. This police officer, a commander in fact at a police station to the West of Paris, was coming home last night in civilian clothes. He wasn't in uniform. When he was attacked and apparently, according to media reports, stabbed nine times. And then later when he took refuge in the police officer's house and the SWAT teams went in and killed the assailant after a couple of hours of negotiation, inside the House they found the companion of the police officer dead. Both, the couple, both of the couple members were members of the police force. The woman was a secretary at a police station not too far away from where she was killed. And the husband, 42 years old, was the commander at another police station a short distance away. They are now saying that the assailant was known to police, that

he was sentenced to two and a half years in prison for association with a terrorist group, recruiting specifically terrorist members to go off to Pakistan along with seven other people who were also convicted at the same time. He had a kind of, according to the reports, that we're hearing, he had a kind of a -- the sort of -- the way he progressed to terrorism was something similar we've heard all along. He was a petty criminal, went to jail for petty crimes, and then became radicalized.

This attack has now been claimed by the same terrorist website that claimed the Orlando attack, which is just a few hours after the killings. In fact the attack was claimed by this terrorist website.

It should be pointed out, however, there's no indication that ISIS had directed this attack, but rather that the website claimed it after the fact -- Amara?

[02:45:22] WALKER: And just quickly, Jim, we should remind our viewers that France is hosting the Euro 2016 tournament. Already increased security for that for this football tournament. What will the impact be on that and will we see even more heightened security because of this latest terror attack as it's been characterized as?

BITTERMANN: Well, one wonders how much higher it can get. The fact is we're in a state of emergency right now. This kind of an attack with a knife in a suburban neighborhood with a policeman in civilian clothes, it's the kind of thing that it could happen practically anywhere in this country no matter how high the level of protection was. Again, it was a knife that was used in this attack. No arms other than a knife were found as far as the police are reporting to this point.

WALKER: Jim Bittermann live for us there in Paris. Appreciate, that Jim. Thanks for that.

And we're going to take a short break. We're back after this.

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[02:50:29] WALKER: Welcome back, everyone. The world mourns the mass shooting victims. Here in Los Angeles hundreds gathered for a candlelight vigil and rally outside city hall Monday evening. And pop star, Lady Gaga, delivered an emotional speech.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

LADY GAGA, SINGER: I gather humbly with you as a human being in peace and sincerity and commitment and solidarity.

(END VIDEO CLIP) WALKER: And there was a show of solidarity in New York as well.

Huge crowds gathering there near the historic Stonewall Inn to honor those who died. Riots at the inn back in 1969 launched the modern gay rights movement.

VAUSE: Well, clearly, this tragedy has touched so many people around the world but the pain is being felt the most by those closest to the shooting victims.

CNN's Gary Tuchman met with one woman who says she didn't just lose her friend, she lost her family.

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GARY TUCHMAN, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Nobody should ever have to endure this. Family and friends of those who were missing in Orlando told to meet at a makeshift crisis center where they would receive the official word on whether their loved ones had been identified.

Sarah Lopez was told to show up at 8:00 a.m. to find out about her closest friend in the world, Frankie Jimmy DeJesus Velasquez, who was missing. But instead, she received a call in the middle of the night that he had, indeed, been killed.

LOPEZ, LOST FRIEND IN ORLANDO SHOOTING: I thought he was immortal. You know? He always said that he would never left me, that he would never abandon me. And I trusted him.

TUCHMAN: Sarah always called him Jimmy. He worked in retail. She is an artist. They met where they both grew up, in Puerto Rico, and both moved to the Orlando area.

(on camera): When did you first meet Jimmy?

LOPEZ: I meet Jimmy when I was 16 years old, you know, at his sister's house. I fell in love immediately. We knew that we were stuck for the rest of our lives together that very moment. Even when he was gay and I was gay. So it was not a sexual attraction. It was a soul maybe.

TUCHMAN: But you were best friends?

LOPEZ: Yes.

TUCHMAN: Soul mates?

LOPEZ: He was my brother.

TUCHMAN (voice-over): Most of Jimmy's family remains in Puerto Rico. Same with Sarah. They relied on each other when they moved to the mainland and relied on each other for three and a half decades since. When she received the call that Jimmy was dead, her mind raced.

LOPEZ: I remember when we used to dance salsa. I remember when my son was sick and he stayed with me in the hospital. I remember when my sister died. I remember when our best friend died a few years ago. In two seconds. Oh, it's like he passed in front of me.

TUCHMAN: Sarah says Jimmy was at the Pulse nightclub with two of his friends who survived. They told her they started crawling towards a bathroom when the gunman was reloading. But one of those friends says Jimmy didn't follow. He was playing dead, hoping the gunman would ignore him.

LOPEZ: When he looked back, he said he saw Jimmy in the fetal position and the guy was shooting. In that move. He said that he was like a hundred, bam, bam, bam, bam, bam. In a minute.

TUCHMAN: Sarah's mind plays tricks with her. What if Jimmy crawled too? Would he be alive and with her tonight?

Instead, she now begins to help his mother and three sisters from Puerto Rico plan a funeral and wonders what her life will be like now.

LOPEZ: We don't know. I might be surviving, but I know I'm not without him. And I can prove you when I clean my home, when I listen to salsa, he is right here with me. He's going to be right here.

TUCHMAN: Shortly after we talked with Sarah, she and a niece of Jimmy's went to the medical examiner's office. Jimmy's body had arrived.

Gary Tuchman, CNN, Orlando.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

[02:54:57] VAUSE: Wow.

Well, Equality Florida, an LGBT civil rights organization, has started a Go Fund Me page for the victims in Orlando. They're collecting money for the victims and their families. So far, you can see there, they've raised almost $3 million and counting.

WALKER: For more resources and information on how you can help as well, you can visit CNN.com/impact.

That does it for us here. I'm Amara Walker, in Los Angeles.

VAUSE: I'm John Vause, in Orlando.

CNN's special coverage of the massacre in Orlando continues after the break.

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