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50 Dead, 53 Wounded In Worst Mass Shooting In U.S. History; U.S. Politicians React To Orlando Terror Attack; Attack Averted at the Gay Pride Parade in Los Angeles. Aired 12-1a ET

Aired June 13, 2016 - 00:00   ET

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

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

[00:00:00] LIN-MANUEL MIRANDA, COMPOSER: Love is love is love is love is love, cannot be killed or swept aside. I sing Vanessa's symphony, Eliza tells her story. Now fill the world with music, love, and pride. Thank you so much for this.

(APPLAUSE)

TEXT: Terror In Orlando.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It was dark. You don't know what's going on. People were falling. People were running. Glasses were getting dropped. I'm getting covered in blood from other people.

BARACK OBAMA (D), PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: We know enough to say that this was an act of terror and an act of hate.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Around 1:30 in the morning, we lost her inside the club. She just had another baby three months ago. Her family is devastated.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: No one can tell me where my son is, if he's been shot, if he's dead.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Haven't heard anything, no like dead body, if he's alive or if he's breathing.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We are making it clear, anyone who attacks our LGBT community, anyone who attacks anyone in our state, will be gone after to the fullest extent of the law.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We, as a gay community, we are a resilient people. We're going to have people lined out behind those blood banks. We're going to show what the good heart of humanity is.

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ISHA SESAY, CNN ANCHOR: Hello and welcome to our viewers in the United States and around the world. I'm Isha Sesay in Los Angeles.

JOHN VAUSE, CNN ANCHOR: And I'm John Vause, live in Orlando, Florida, where the FBI is now investigating the worst mass shooting in U.S. history and worst terror attack in this country since 9/11. Fifty people were killed, 53 wounded in the attack at a gay nightclub in Orlando. There has been no claim of responsibility so far, but authorities say the gunman called 911 and pledged allegiance to ISIS during the three-hour long siege. A witness shared this video where you'll hear the gun shots as police stormed the club and killed the shooter.

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(gunfire)

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VAUSE: The FBI had investigated the gunman, 29-year-old Omar Mateen, in the past, to ties of terrorism, but he was not found to be a threat. Mateen's ex-wife says he was bipolar and abusive.

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SITORA YUSUFIY, EX-WIFE OF OMAR MATEEN: Instability, emotional instability, sickness. Mentally -- he was mentally unstable and mentally ill. That's the only explanation that I could give, and he was obviously disturbed deeply, and traumatized.

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VAUSE: For the 15th time during his presidency, Barack Obama addressed the nation in response to a mass shooting.

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OBAMA: Although it's still early in the investigation, we know enough to say that this was an act of terror and an act of hate. And as Americans, we are united in grief, in outrage, and in resolve to defend our people.

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VAUSE: Mourners gathered at candle light vigils in Orlando and across the country on Sunday to honor the victims of this tragedy. CNN's Nick Valencia joins us in just a moment with more about the victims. But let's start with Jessica Schneider who is near the Pulse nightclub. And Jessica, you have more details about the actual timeline of what happened inside that club.

JESSICA SCHNEIDER, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, John, you know, on Saturday night, the nightclub was packed. It's their most popular night. It's Latin night. There were about 350 people inside that nightclub. Then law enforcement says at around 2:00 in the morning, that gunman stormed in. The first person he encountered was an off- duty police officer who was working security at the club. The gunman then went in. He took several people hostage, and he opened fire. This attack went down in two separate areas of the club. Now, for three long, tense, and agonizing hours, that gunman was inside. He was shooting. He was taking hostages. People were trying to stay in different parts of the club, trying to stay safe. It wasn't until 5:00 in the morning that police finally were able to move in. They used armored vehicles to smash down a wall and then get inside and rescue some of those hostages. We're not so clear what exactly was happening between 2:00 am and 5:00 am, but that's how long it took to get in there, to get the hostages out, and that's when law enforcement finally was able to shoot and kill that gunman. John --

VAUSE: And Jessica, you also -- you've heard some incredible stories about how people managed to survive the shooting.

[00:04:55] SCHNEIDER: Yes, you know, really agonizing stories, really terrible stories, horrific stories, but also amazing that these people had the will to survive. In one case, we heard of a woman who was in a bathroom. She actually had to resort to covering herself with some of the dead bodies in there just to stay safe. In another case, we heard about a bartender who was underneath the glass bar. When police came in, they said, anyone who is alive, please raise your hands. And then there was the case of many people back in a dressing room in that club, and they all huddled together and stayed safe until police were able to actually take out an air-conditioning unit, and then those people were able to climb through to get to safety. So really some harrowing tales, and also some text messages emerging where people are texting their family members, asking, pleading with them for help, to call police, and to get them to safety. But of course, John, 50 people ending being killed here tonight.

VAUSE: And Jessica, there are still bodies inside that club. Is there a timeline at this point on how long it will actually take to clear the building?

SCHNEIDER: Yes, law enforcement has been updating throughout the day, and the one thing that they have been saying, John, is that, please, give them your patience. They say that this is really a two-pronged endeavor here. This is all part of the investigation. They have to figure out. They have to canvass this scene. But they also have to notify the family members of these 50 people who were killed. So they said it will take time to get those bodies out and also to figure out what exactly what went down and to eventually clear this scene. John --

VAUSE: OK, Jessica, thank you, Jessica Schneider. Let's go to Nick Valencia now for more on the victims. Nick, of course, this is such a terrible, agonizing wait for the relatives and the friends of all the people inside that club. Right now, so many unknowns at this point.

NICK VALENCIA, CNN CORRESPONDENT: It's a sickening day here, John, for those, the friends, the family affected by this senseless tragedy. We're going on nearly 24 hours since this shooting first began, and some family members still don't have answers for the whereabouts of their loved ones. We're joined by one of those family members, Sara Lopez. Sarah, thank you so much for taking the time with CNN. Your brother is missing, but they're not telling you anything? Tell us what's going on.

SARA LOPEZ, SISTER OF MISSING MAN: Anything, every time they send us to some place, when we get there or the list, it's not there. No one knows anything. They sent us to another place, and they closed. I have to come tomorrow and put my pain on hold. He is not on the survival list. He's not on the victims list. And everything is the list, the list. I just want to know about him.

VALENCIA: You were at one of those staging areas where they put all the friends and the family there, waiting to hear news about what happened. Explain to us the scene when those doctors walked in there to read off the names of the survivors and when people didn't hear the names of their family members. What was that like?

LOPEZ: Well, imagine you have like six hours, 250 people, in a small rooms, waiting for news, and then this guy came, and I don't know -- I don't remember exact the words because it was too many people yelling. But it was something to the effect that, we're going to read the names of the people that have been identified in the hospital. If you don't hear their name, maybe they don't make it. Something like that. But when he start talking about the list, it was so cold that people start yelling, fainting, vomiting, fighting, jumping over chairs. So I was scared, and I get out because it was like an enclosed space, that they shouldn't have more than 30 people. It was like 250.

VALENCIA: Sara, you're fighting a wave of emotions right now. You're sad. You're frustrated. You feel like you don't have any answers. What is going through your heart right now? What's going on with you?

LOPEZ: I just want to find him. Dead, hurt, whatever.

VALENCIA: You need answers.

LOPEZ: I just need to know where is Jimmy. I just need to know where is Jimmy, what happened to him. You know, his friends, two of the survivors tell me what was his last moments, but until you don't have the official news, you keep holding faith.

VALENCIA: You know that he was there because of those two friends, those two survivors. They came out and they spoke to you. What did they tell you that they saw inside the pulse nightclub when the shooting happened?

LOPEZ: Well, he said that it was the last call, that the bartender was calling last call for the bar. So they get like against the wall to get out because that -- that club is really tricky. There's not enough exit rooms. The terrorists have it padlocked, the only exits that people can get out. So they was like standing towards the door, but the gunman was there, so they couldn't.

[00:10:02] They hear -- and they thought it was the music. But then when he start to hear it more close, so they realized that there was something going on. And someone said something towards like, to the floor, to the floor. So they went to the floor, and he saw people falling like a domino effect. He saw people running and falling, running and falling. So they realized it was a shooting.

VALENCIA: That's terrible.

LOPEZ: The guy went without ammunitions, so suddenly it was a silence. So they said, if we don't run now, we're not going to make it. So they started like doing this, crawling towards the bathroom, because there's no place to be safe in that place. And they opened the door -- so they looked back, thinking that Jimmy is behind them. So they saw Jimmy in fetal position, and then he said that he heard more than 100 shots together, all together. And he was shooting to everything that moved. Like he was -- he didn't want to leave no one alive. That he was on a mission.

VALENCIA: Well, we hope for good news, and we pray for good news for you, Sara. For what's next for family members and friends like Sara Lopez, tomorrow at 8:00 am, they're expected to get official word of whether or not their family members, their loved ones, their friends that were inside the Pulse nightclub -- they're going to get official word at 8:00 am tomorrow whether they survived. A couple hours after that, at 10:00 am Eastern, we expect a briefing from local officials to tell the media what they told the family members. And we'll get that word, and when we have that press conference later tomorrow morning, we'll be sure to take that live here on CNN. John --

VAUSE: That will be a very long eight hours to wait. Nick, thank you very much. Nick Valencia there with the latest on the victims. Jessica Schneider, too, giving some new details about the timeline of exactly what happened inside this club. Thanks to you both. I'd like to bring in Chris Enzo now. He's a friend of one of the bar tenders who works at the Pulse nightclub. He was wounded when the gunman opened fire early on Sunday morning. So Chris, how is your friend? What's his condition?

CHRIS ENZO, FRIEND OF ORLANDO SHOOTING VICTIM: Well, right now he seems to be in a stable condition. What happened is, when I went and I actually got a chance to visit him, he was very weak but very strong-willed. So it looks like he will be able to pull through this. He was actually going to have surgery today, but because he was tired and didn't get a chance to eat and/or sleep, he did eat, and now they're going to wait for him to fast and make sure that they do the surgery in the morning.

VAUSE: So he was shot whereabouts? Do you know?

ENZO: Basically what happened is, I was here earlier trying to piece together what happened, because out of these 50 shooters -- or the 50 people dead, this affects everyone in Orlando. So I wanted to know which one of my friends had been hurt by this because I do frequent the night life out here and we're all a very small community. When I went to go visit Rodney, he told me that when he was inside the club and he was bar tending over here at Pulse, that he saw the assailant come in. He wasn't -- he didn't know that that was an assailant at the time. Then when he heard gunshots, the person in front of him that he was bartending for was a woman that died. And he was turning around to grab alcohol. He got shot three times.

VAUSE: In the back?

ENZO: Two in the back, one in the elbow. And then after that, he fell to the ground. And when he fell to the ground, he was overwhelmed with the fear of death. He heard chaos. He heard consistent semi-automatic shooting, and he said it would not stop. He thought it was going to have a break in between the shooting, but there wasn't. He even suspects that he heard two guns going off, and he suspects there may have been multiple assailants. But he made the choice whether or not he was going to live or die, and he got overwhelmed with the will to live, and he ran out the door before the hostage situation took place.

VAUSE: He managed to get out even though he had been shot three times?

ENZO: Three, yes.

VAUSE: So he goes into surgery tomorrow. Clearly this is devastating for so many people. How are you and your friends -- because you obviously know people who are involved in all of this -- how are you dealing with this? How do you process all this?

ENZO: Right now, it's overwhelming, because even the people that I've talked to today, they say that they feel too scared to go outside. They feel like they want to stay home and not go to work tomorrow. And as someone that does things out here in the night life and entertainment, we were actually deciding whether or not we were going to continue with a show that we're putting on on Friday and we decided that we want Orlando City to stay strong and that we want everyone to realize that we don't want to cower down due to terrorist attacks, and we don't want to give into fear. Our mood is very strong so far and all of our friends are rooting for Rodney to get better. And we're hoping that everyone who has been affected by this can find some condolences in the situation.

VAUSE: And just take me back to almost 24 hours ago when the news first broke that there had, in fact, been a shooting at the Pulse club. What was your first thought?

ENZO: The first thing that happened is -- I was supposed to be out here because a friend of mine was doing a show. His name is (inaudible), he was doing a show at (inaudible), and I was going to go to that, but what happened is I ended up staying home. I was with a friend, and me and her both got a text message that 25 people had died over here at pulse. There was a hostage situation going on.

VAUSE: What did you think at the time?

[00:15:08] ENZO: At the time, it was unbelievable. We were texting friends and trying to figure things out. When I talked to Rodney, he said that -- well, actually on the way to the hospital, when I was going there, a lot of families were coming out crying, and I got a chance to talk to a nurse. And she has said that -- she said nine more people had died since then. So that is unconfirmed information at the moment, but there's so many missing pieces to this puzzle and us trying to figure out what happened. We're all still trying to piece together what happened. Was there more than one assailant? Was this a hate crime? Was it not a hate crime?

VAUSE: All these questions which will be answered in the coming days. Maybe some may never be answered. Chris, thank you very much for sharing what happened. We wish you all the very best.

ENZO: Thank you. VAUSE: Thank you sir. We're slowly learning the names of the victims

of this attack, as Orlando authorities and their families identify them. (ph) Cory Cornell's father tells CNN, his son is one of the many wounded in the shooting. There's no word on his condition at this time. The city of Orlando named Stanley Almodovar as one of the 50 people who died in this massacre. The list also included Edward Sotomayor Jr., Luis Omar Ocasio-Capo, Juan Ramon Guerrero, Eric Ivan Ortiz Rivera, and Peter O. Gonzalez-Cruz, and Luis S. Vielma, and Kimberly Morris.

Donald Trump, Hillary Clinton, and Bernie Sanders are reacting to the Orlando terror attack. What the U.S. presidential candidates are saying about this tragedy coming up.

SESAY: Plus, after the Orlando tragedy, police arrested a man headed to the L.A. pride parade. Why he may have threatened the gay pride event, coming up.

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[00:21:02] UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It was just one after another after another after another. It could have lasted a whole song, I mean, because after everybody was out, the shootings were still going, and the cops were yelling go, go, clear the area! Clear the area!

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SESAY: You are watching CNN's breaking news coverage of the worst mass shooting in modern U.S. History. I'm Isha Sesay in Los Angeles.

VAUSE: And I'm John Vause, live in Orlando, where it's 21 minutes past midnight. Fifty people are dead, another 53 are wounded. People inside the Pulse nightclub described a scene of panic. Some saying at first they thought the gunshots were part of the show. Now we're getting dramatic details about how some of the survivors were able to escape death. One person hiding in the bathroom covered herself with bodies. And one of the bar tenders says she hid under the glass bar until police arrived and called out for survivors. And I will have much more from Orlando throughout this hour. In the meantime, back to Isha in Los Angeles.

SESAY: Thanks, John. Well, U.S. presidential candidates have been quick to react to the Orlando massacre. Donald Trump pointed the finger at U.S. leadership and warned of future attacks. The presumptive Republican nominee tweeted this -- what has happened in Orlando is just the beginning. Our leadership is weak and ineffective. I called and asked for the ban. Must be tough.

The presumptive Democratic nominee, Hillary Clinton, tweeted, this was an act of terror. This was also an act of hate.

President Obama was scheduled to make his first campaign appearance with Clinton on Wednesday, but that event has been postponed. And Democratic presidential candidate Bernie Sanders called the mass shooting horrific and sent his condolences to the victims from his home state of Vermont.

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SEN. BERNIE SANDERS (D-VT), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Let me begin by expressing my (ph) horror at what happened in Orlando. One of those things that is just unimaginable. Our hearts and condolences go out to the families of the 50-plus people who lost their lives in this unbelievably horrific mass murder.

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SESAY: Let's turn now to CNN law enforcement contributor, Steve Moore, and L.A. city attorney, Mike Feuer. Gentlemen, welcome to you both. Thank you for joining us. Steve, let me start with you. Many people are trying to make a decision as to what to call this attack, how they should label it. Was this a hate crime or an act of terror?

STEVE MOORE, CNN LAW ENFORCEMENT CONTRIBUTOR: Yes. It was both. I mean, when has an ISIS attack not been a hate crime? Was 9/11 a hate crime? Yes, it was. You're just getting into a more specific group of people that they particularly despise. So it's both. It's a hate crime and an ISIS act of terror, and we have to see it as both.

SESAY: The question of the weaponry, the firearms, again, another issue people are considering this evening is how was this man able to walk into an establishment, however he procured them, and buy these two guns, bearing in mind he had been questioned by the FBI a couple of times, and he was able to buy these guns legally?

MOORE: I think what you have to look at is whether the FBI is allowed to give the results of an investigation that doesn't result in an indictment or finding of a crime. Can they just give the results of an investigation to another government agency? People are a little bit squeamish about an investigation that the FBI does that doesn't result in charges, releasing it to other people.

SESAY: Let me bring in Mike here. Mike, you're part of a coalition of national prosecutors fighting gun violence. People don't understand this. How could he have bought these guns legally when he had been questioned by the FBI?

[00:25:01] MIKE FEUER, L.A. CITY ATTORNEY: Well, the answer falls squarely on the fact that congress again and again has failed to act, particularly in the wake of these horrible shootings, where the majority, the overwhelming majority of the American public would like to see certain firm steps taken. And let's look at this particular incident. He had access to an automatic weapon. The assault weapons ban was allowed to expire in congress. And let's also take note of the fact that for a period of time, this shooter was on the terrorist watch list, and according to reports, he was removed from that list. Look just recently. Congress chose not to enact legislation, the most common sense legislation one could imagine, that would have said that those on the terrorist watch list can't purchase weapons. So this incident is both horrific -- it calls on us to extend tremendous empathy to the families of those who have been killed or injured. It calls on us to look to the best of each other and stand strongly together. And it's a call to action all at once.

SESAY: A call to action all at once. But when you hear the rhetoric coming out of the campaigns, the Clinton campaign, the Trump campaign, politicizing this immediately -- although some would say it's a political issue -- does it help? Does it help you as you talk about taking action in response to this?

FEUER: The key issue is not what is said today. It's what action will take place tomorrow. There are important statements that need to be said in the wake of a tragedy like this, and those statements need not divide us from each other, but bring us together. They are -- there is also the possibility that statements today can have a catalytic effect on what happens tomorrow. I am eager to see congress stand up and say, there should be an assault weapons ban. There are only -- there are 43 states in the United States where you can purchase an assault weapon legally. California is not one of them, but federal law can change that tomorrow, and federal law can say that if you're on the terrorist watch list, you can't have a weapon during that time. That should happen.

SESAY: Steve --

MOORE: And that's where I would agree with Mike here. You can't ask the FBI to do something that is not legal. And if the law says that you can take somebody from the terror watch list or any of the lists that they've got and prohibit them from guns, that's one thing. But the FBI can't unilaterally go to somebody and say, you know what, you know, that's like the HIPPA warnings. A doctor can't go to someone and just divulge your medical records. So that's the problem they have.

SESAY: Gentlemen, we must leave it there, but it is a conversation that will continue in the days ahead, of course. Thank you so much. Thank you, Mike, thank you, Steve.

We're going to go back to Orlando after the break with more on what officials are learning about the gunman.

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[00:31:35] UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I just want to say that we, as a gay community: gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender community are people who love. And if you think that you're going to stab at the heart of us by doing this horrible, violent act, you're not.

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SESAY: You're watching CNN's "Breaking News" coverage of the worst terror attack in the United States since 9/11.

I'm Isha Sesay in Los Angeles.

VAUSE: And I'm John Vause live in Orlando. The FBI is leading this investigation into the terror attack on a gay nightclub here in Orlando. 50 people were killed. Another 53 were wounded.

A U.S. official says the gunman called 911 during the shooting to pledge allegiance to ISIS. Police shot and killed the gunman. He's been identified as 29-year-old Omar Mateen. And official says he legally bought a handgun and a long gun in the last few days.

The FBI interviewed Mateen in 2013 and 2014, but says the interviews turned out to be inconclusive.

Joining me now here in Orlando is CNN's military analyst, retired Lieutenant General Mark Hertling and CNN's senior law enforcement analyst Tom Fuentes. He is live in Honolulu, Hawaii.

Tom, first to you. Just in terms of the investigation, what's the key here now? What's the focus as we move into the next day here for the investigators?

TOM FUENTES, CNN SENIOR LAW ENFORCEMENT ANALYST: Well, the key still will be to determine whether he was absolutely alone. Are there some other people out there that were conspiring with him and may attack another club or another facility in the near future? They just didn't participate in this one. So that's a key thing for the authorities or for the FBI to determine, that he was absolutely alone.

And with the exception of a possible copycat, they're not aware of anybody else participating in this conspiracy.

VAUSE: And, General Hertling, to you. It appears ISIS did not direct this. They may have inspired this attack, but either way, this is exactly what ISIS would have wanted. It's a huge body count. I mean that club, it was a slaughterhouse.

MARK HERTLING, CNN MILITARY ANALYST: It was packed, between 300 and 350 people. This was a phenomenal target for this individual. So there had to be a whole lot of recon, reconnaissance. There had to be some training. He had to prepare this thing long in advance, knowing that it was a special night with this specific Hispanic party that was going on there and with the number of people in there and the closed arena. It was just, like you said, a blood bath.

VAUSE: And for ISIS, this is a huge propaganda win, isn't it?

HERTLING: It is. It is. Because it hits a couple of things. First of all, it hits the infidels. Secondly, they have already said that they are against gays and lesbians, so it strikes that part of the target. And again brings another attack on our soil from someone who is one of our citizens.

I mean, that's the most interesting piece. It goes after that call for action that Baghdadi has made.

VAUSE: And Tom Fuentes to you, would you say that this is considered a hate crime against the gay community? Or is this an act of terrorism? Or do you simply define it as both?

FUENTES: I would define it as both. And I think that terrorism by itself pretty much is certainly a hateful type crime, which is the purpose for committing it, to strike terror. You hate an ideology or some other political reason within a country that you want to use terrorism.

[00:35:00] So when you have an attack based on religion, politics, national policies, some other reason like that, it's because you hate the way things are and want them to be changed, and you can't do it at the ballot box or with your military.

So that's the purpose of terrorism. And in this case, the extra hate added because ISIS does hate gays.

And we've seen the videos from Raqqah where they push gay people off of tall buildings or stone them to death. So this is a religion -- or this version of their religion that has no tolerance for the gay community.

VAUSE: And, Tom, in terms of the investigation, the ATF is saying that both these weapons, these guns, were in fact legally purchased.

Is that the end of that part of the investigation now, or can anything else be learned?

FUENTES: Well, I don't know what else can be learned in that sense. The one thing that's going to want to be learned by the authorities is are those two weapons the only one used in this attack?

So when they do the ballistic test on other bullets recovered from the victims, either in surgery or during autopsies, they're going to want to verify that all of those bullets came from one or the other of the two weapons there.

But, you know, much is being made about the fact that this individual had been questioned on two occasions by the FBI and still able to purchase a weapon. But the constitutional lawyers will tell you that someone does not have a constitutional right to fly on an airplane.

Therefore, they can be on the no-fly list. But in America, people have a constitutional right, unless they're convicted felons or unless they're judged mentally ill, if those two things, one or the other, aren't present, they have a right to go buy the weapon and so far they're not prohibited because of the Second Amendment in the United States.

VAUSE: And that's a good point. Let's speak on that to General Hertling. Would you say that this -- would you consider this an act of international terrorism, or is this an issue of gun control?

HERTLING: A little bit of both. And it also has to do with a hate crime. So you're talking about a combination of someone who has pledged allegiance to an Islamist group.

It's a hate crime to be sure, but it's also an issue of gun control, because we're talking about a semi-automatic weapon which had to be reloaded several times. A lot of magazine changes. You're talking about Glock pistols, semi-automatic pistols. These are the kind of things that are not used in the hunting community or for sport. These are killing machines. And I think when you're talking about the individuals who are being dug out of that club right now, the unfortunates who have died, you're going to see weapons that have caused a massive amount of damage because they are military-style assault weapons. The bullets tumble, rapid fire. So those bodies unfortunately are going to be in very bad condition.

VAUSE: You've seen up close --

HERTLING: I have.

VAUSE: The kind of damage they do.

Last question to you, Tom Fuentes, in Honolulu. The bottom line here, though, and you raised this point, is that up until this morning, 24 hours ago, Mateen actually hadn't broken any laws.

FUENTES: No, he had not. And, you know, we don't know when he decided to take this action. But we do know the weapons that he used were purchased just within the past week. So he could have been radicalized to that extent over the edge just within the last week or two. So he did buy those weapons legally.

VAUSE: OK. Tom Fuentes, thank you very much.

And General Mark Hertling, thank you for being with us.

We will take a short break here. But when we come back, as the world mourns this tragedy here in Orlando, another attack may have been averted at the gay pride parade in Los Angeles. Those details in just a moment.

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[00:42:10] UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I really can't describe it. I mean, I really can't. (INAUDIBLE), it's hard. And I don't wish this on anybody.

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SESAY: Hello, everyone. You are watching CNN's "Breaking News" coverage of the worst mass shooting in United States history.

I'm Isha Sesay in Los Angeles.

VAUSE: I'm John Vause live in Orlando. And it has been nearly 24 hours since that shooting. And many families so desperately waiting to learn what happened to their loved ones.

At least 300 people were inside the club when those shots rang out. So far, eight of the victims have been identified. Police say the gunman, 29-year-old Omar Mateen, had been working as a security officer for one of the world's largest private security companies since 2007.

Let's go back now to Isha in Los Angeles.

SESAY: Thanks, John.

While authorities investigate the mass shooting in Orlando, another tragedy may have been averted right here in Los Angeles.

Police say a man arrested on Sunday had assault weapons and explosive material and that he was headed to a gay pride event.

Our Kyung Lah has more.

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KYUNG LAH, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Just hours after the Orlando mass murder began, as words spread about the shooting inside the Pulse Nightclub, police near Los Angeles arrest 20-Year-Old James Howell, with a frightening arsenal.

Inside Howell's white Acura police find three assault rifles, a rifle scope, hi-capacity magazines and ammunition, a gas canister, a black vest with a security badge and a five gallon bucket with chemicals capable of making a bomb. Police say he tells them where he's going.

ERIC GARCETTI, LOS ANGELES MAYOR: He said he was coming to pride and who was heavily armed and apprehended by Santa Monica Police Department officials.

LAH: He was arrested just before dawn. A neighbor called the Santa Monica police reporting a suspected prowler. Police say Howell was sitting in his car with Indiana plates, his home state.

Howell has a criminal history in Indiana, arrested for intimidation with a weapon. Police also say his 17-year-old boyfriend, in a lover's quarrel, accused him of pointing an AR-style rifle at him last year. But that did not lead to an arrest. A perplexing profile which leads police to say this.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE POLICE OFFICER: We do not have any additional information related to what his intentions were.

LAH (on-camera): Police were now looking at all this with new concern. Thousands gathering for the L.A. pride parade in the wake of the Orlando shooting and the arrest here. Adding another layer of security, more officers. The city decided the parade would go on.

(voice-over): And it did. Orlando scrawled on hastily made signs carried by this LGBT community as a badge of solidarity.

[00:45:07] UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We're stronger than the fear. We're stronger than all of the scary things that are going on in the world right now.

LAH: What could have been hovering over this community.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Thank God. Seriously, thank God for the police catching this guy. It's just sickening. It's -- it's crazy.

LAH: Kyung Lah, CNN, Santa Monica, California.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

SESAY: We're joined now by Lorri L. Jean. She's the CEO of the Los Angeles LGBT Center.

Lorri, thank you so much for joining us.

Our hearts, our prayers go out to the community at this difficult time.

How are you doing? How are you coming to terms with this?

LORRI L. JEAN, CEO, LOS ANGELES LGBT CENTER: Well, it's been a tough day. I woke up to a 6:15 text about the murders. And I immediately experienced enormous grief. And then as the day went on, I grew angry.

SESAY: Why?

JEAN: Because the focus has been on the influence of ISIS on this murder. And that might have impacted him. But you don't have to go to the Middle East to learn this kind of bigotry and hatred. You can get it right here in the United States from fundamentalist Christian leaders and many G.O.P. politicians who have fomented this kind of violence.

SESAY: You were there at Pride today.

Is that a feeling shared by many? I mean, is this what people are talking about in the community?

JEAN: Oh, yes. Many people are talking about this. Many people are also talking about being afraid, but that we could not allow this act of hate and terror to stop us from celebrating.

So we marched in solidarity with Orlando, but we celebrated in defiance of fear and bigotry.

SESAY: So this question of whether it was an act of terror or whether it was a hate crime, you say what?

JEAN: Oh, clearly both. Clearly both. But we should not let people off the hook who are right here in the United States. When candidates for president like Donald Trump talk about rolling back all of the gains that LGBT people have made and promoting discrimination against us, when Rubio talks about not allowing us to raise our children, that promotes a level of hatred and bigotry that leads to this kind of violence. SESAY: I want to bring up something that Lena Dunham, the actress and the show creator of the show "Girls" tweeted, and she put it on Instagram.

She said, "Pulse," which as you know is the club that was attacked. "Pulse is more than a club, historically, marginalized people need safe spaces that cultivate community and identity."

And it struck me as really profound because for too many people in the LGBT community, they don't feel safe or they have to put up with strange looks and condemnations or criticisms.

A place like "Pulse" was a place where they went to be free and to have a good time. And it happened right here in what should have been a safe space.

JEAN: That's right, and that's what makes it so insidious and terrorizing.

And even if places like Los Angeles, the most recent hate crimes report by our city showed a 14 percent increase with a level of increased violence that we hadn't seen in 13 years. So while we have made much progress as a community, our work is far from done.

SESAY: And (INAUDIBLE), the Florida lawmaker has been critical of the protections given to the LGBT community, saying that, you know, this is a moment that shines a light on that issue.

How real is that issue? Talk to me about that and that issue of policing and protection.

JEAN: Well, I think the issue is very real. As long as LGBT people are treated as second-class citizens in this country, as long as we have political leaders and religious leaders saying that we threaten the morality of this country or that we're a danger to children, that just invites these marginal, sometimes crazy people to take actions like what this murder took yesterday.

SESAY: Lorri, again, I say our hearts go out to you and be strong.

JEAN: We will. This won't stop us.

SESAY: It will not. I know it won't from everyone i've spoken to. It will not, and it shouldn't.

Lorri L. Jean, thank you.

JEAN: Thank you.

SESAY: Thank you.

We're going to take a quick break now.

Still to come, a heartfelt message of unity on Broadway's biggest night. The Tony Awards pay tribute to the terror victims in Orlando.

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(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

[00:53:20] SEN. MARCO RUBIO, (R-FL) FORMER PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: This is an ongoing thing that ultimately is going to require the Islamic world to reject radicalism. And to basically discredit it as a proper way forward. And that's a huge challenge. That's going to take a long time. And, unfortunately, in the meantime, we're going to have to continue to fight the war on terror. And sadly last night the war on terror came to Orlando.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SESAY: Well, you are watching CNN's "Breaking News" coverage of the worst terror attack in the United States since 9/11.

I'm Isha Sesay in Los Angeles.

VAUSE: I'm John Vause live in Orlando where it's coming up to 1:00 in the morning.

The gunman was a 29-year-old U.S. citizen, Omar Mateen, who worked as a security officer for one of the world's largest private security companies.

The FBI says they interviewed him twice in 2013 and 2014, but he was considered to be not a threat.

Mateen gunned down 50 people before police shot and killed him. 53 others are wounded.

Mateen called 911, and during that call, he pledged allegiance to ISIS. But it's unclear what ties, if any, he actually had to the militant group.

Let's go back now to Isha Sesay in Los Angeles.

SESAY: John, the Tony Awards in New York took on a somber note Sunday night as presenters and attendees honored the victims of the Orlando terror attack.

The awards go to the Best in Live Broadway Theater. Accepting his award for Best Lead Actor in a Play, Frank Langella urged Orlando to be strong.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

FRANK LANGELLA, TONY AWARDS RECIPIENT: Today in Orlando, we had a hideous dose of reality. And I urge you, Orlando, to be strong because I'm standing in a room full of the most generous human beings on earth. And we will be with you every step of the way.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

[00:55:10] SESAY: Well, police presence in New York was beefed up in the wake of the tragedy. New York Mayor Bill De Blasio tweeted, "The city was well protected from terror attacks by its police."

And vigils are being held across the U.S. to pay tribute to the victims of the deadliest mass shooting in this country's history.

In New York City, the spire on one World Trade Center is lit up in the colors of the rainbow flag as you see there.

Hundreds of people from multiple faiths gathered in Austin, Texas, to show their support for all those affected by the tragedy.

And in Seattle, Washington, the iconic Space Needle is flying the rainbow flag at half staff.

You are watching CNN's "Breaking News" coverage. I'm Isha Sesay.

VAUSE: And I'm John Vause. Isha and I will be back with a lot more right after this.

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