Additional details about the deadliest mass shooting in U.S. history have emerged. During a press conference Monday, Orlando Police Chief John Mina suggested some of the victims at Pulse nightclub may have actually been shot by officers who were trying to perform a rescue mission.
"I will say this, that’s all part of the investigation," Mina said. "But I will say when our SWAT officers, about eight or nine officers, opened fire, the backdrop was a concrete wall, and they were being fired upon."
According to the Daily Mail, the information comes after the Orlando Police Department faced scrutiny over its response time. Many people questioned why it took more than three hours for units to enter the venue after the gunman, Omar Mateen, opened fire. Experts have said that when dealing with a mass shooting, law enforcement must get inside as quickly as possible in order to stop the threat. Orlando officials argued that the tragedy turned from an active-shooter situation to a hostage situation after Mateen entered a bathroom where some of the club’s patrons were hiding. At that time, the shooting stopped, and crisis negotiators began to talk to the gunman to try to resolve the situation. However, after Mateen started talking about explosives, police sent an armed vehicle to ram through the club’s wall, which allowed hostages to run out. Mateen also attempted to flee before cops shot him dead.
Local, federal, and state officials are now investigating the gruesome events that took place June 12.
