Mass shooter Omar Mateen legally purchased weapons from a gun shop in Port St. Lucie days before he massacred 49 people and wounded 53 more at Orlando’s Pulse nightclub early Sunday, authorities said.
Investigators said the gunman purchased a rifle and a handgun from the St. Lucie Shooting Center days before the deadliest mass shooting in U.S. history.
The store’s owner, Edward Henson, said during a news conference Monday that Mateen passed background checks before purchasing the weapons.
“We follow the rules; we don’t make the rules,” Henson said. “I’m sorry that you’re frustrated. I don’t have any more answers for you.”
Henson, a former New York Police Department detective, said Mateen bought the handgun and the rifle about a week apart.
“Unfortunately, he’s evil,” Henson said. “We happened to be the gun store he picked. There’s nothing else I could say. It’s horrible.”
Mateen bought the guns a week to 10 days before the massacre, Henson said.
“I’ve seen him. I can’t tell you I know him. I’d be lying to you. He’s a customer,” Henson said. “He made a purchase. And it’s horrible. I’m just sorry he picked my place. I wish he picked no place.”
Records indicate that Mateen, who was employed as a security guard, held two weapon permits.
Mateen was able to legally purchased the guns despite having been twice investigated by the FBI in recent years for possible ties to terrorism, officials said.
Investigators said that during Sunday’s three-hour attack, Mateen used clips that have the capacity to hold 30 rounds of ammunition in the rifle, and at least some of the clips were configured with two magazines taped together to allow the shooter to reload more quickly.
“Say your prayers for these victims,” Henson said. “It was horrific, and we all feel that same pain.”
