Orlando Killer Called TV Station After Massacre

The FBI says it is pursuing a number of leads as it investigates twenty-nine years American-born Mateen. Forty –nine people were killed at the gay club, fifty-three people were wounded in the attack, with 25 remaining in hospital. Of these, six are in a critical condition.

Omar Mateen who killed 49 people in a gay nightclub in Orlando called a TV station to tell them about the massacre, it has emerged.

News 13 producer Matt Gentili says he took Omar Mateen's call at 2.45am on Sunday, about 45 minutes after he opened fire inside Pulse.

"I answered the phone as I always do: 'News 13, this is Matt.' And on the other end, I heard, 'Do you know about the shooting?'," he said.

Gentili said he replied: "Yes, I'm getting calls. I am hearing reports of a shooting."

The person at the other end then said: "I'm the shooter. It's me. I am the shooter'."

He said the caller told him he had committed the shooting for Islamic State, upon which he started speaking fluently in what Gentili thought was Arabic.

"Whatever language he was speaking, he knew it. And he was speaking it very quickly. And that is when I said to him, 'Sir. Please. Speak in English, please'." 

He said the caller stopped and said: "I did it for ISIS. I did it for the Islamic State."

Gentili said he asked where he was calling from, to be told it was "none of my (expletive) business". 

After a long pause, Gentili asked one final question.  "It was silent for a while. I asked him: 'Is there anything else you want to say?'," Gentili said. 

"He said 'no' and hung up the phone."

The FBI have refused to confirm whether Gentili spoke to the gunman, but News 13 said it had traced the call and the phone number matched Mateen's.

Officers have questioned his wife Noor Salman amid claims she knew of his plans and are investigating whether he was secretly leading a gay life. 

It has been reported Mateen had been seen at the Pulse club several times before the massacre.

The FBI is also urging anyone who had any contact with Mateen or knows anything about him to get in touch, saying no piece of information is too small. 

US Attorney Lee Bentley has warned people to not make threats against members of the Muslim community, saying in most cases it would be illegal.