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Early Start with John Berman and Zoraida Sambolin

Orlando Hit By Worst Terror Attack Since 9/11; Gunman Pledged Allegiance to ISIS; President Obama Calls Orlando Attack an Act of Terror; Aired 4-4:30a ET

Aired June 13, 2016 - 04:00   ET

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

[04:00:01] JAMES CORDEN, TONY AWARDS HOST: Tonight's show as a symbol and a celebration of that principle. This is the Tony Awards.

CURNOW: Beautiful words there. I'm Robyn Curnow in Atlanta. Our coverage of the mass shooting in Orlando continues with "EARLY START" right now.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I went to bed, and when I came out, and boom, boom, and shooting like crazy. They said they shoot my nephew in the head and a friend on the back, and that's why I went out.

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CHRISTINE ROMANS, CNN ANCHOR: The deadliest mass shooting in U.S. history. 50 dead, 53 more injured when a gunman stormed in an Orlando gay club. Three hours of terror. The attacker killed by police. Claiming to have ties to ISIS.

Good morning. Welcome to EARLY START. I'm Christine Romans in New York.

JOHN BERMAN, CNN ANCHOR: And I'm John Berman live in Orlando this morning. It is Monday, June 13th. It is 4:00 a.m. in the East. I am here in Orlando covering the breaking news. Right behind me you can see the Pulse nightclub where 24 hours ago at this moment, terror was unfolding. The worst terror attack on U.S. soil since September 11th. The deadliest mass shooting on U.S. soil ever. 53 people killed. 50 now more hospitalized this morning when a gunman stormed into this building here behind me, pledging allegiance to ISIS and started shooting.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It was just one after another after another after another. And it could have lasted a whole song. I mean, because after everybody was out, people were -- the shooting were still going. And the cops were yelling go, go, clear the area, clear the area.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: People were running everywhere and, you know, gunshots were going off and people were ducking. And people were falling. I hid behind a palm tree, actually, like a palm tree, and it was going off like one after another. (END VIDEO CLIP)

BERMAN: There is still ongoing activity behind me at the club obviously. And overnight FBI officials searched the gunman's home. They are looking for whatever clues they can find right now. Looking into his past, trying to find out what led to this awful tragic event.

We're covering all angles of this story this morning. First with us is CNN's Boris Sanchez.

Boris, you've been here since the very beginning. You join us right now with the latest information about these attacks.

Good morning, Boris.

BORIS SANCHEZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, John. Yes, we've been here since the beginning. And it's been heartbreaking to watch all of this unfold. Right now we're getting a clearer picture of the timeline of how all of this unfolded. How this went from Latin night, a popular club in downtown Orlando, to as you said, the worst terrorist attack on U.S. soil since September 11th.

Essentially this all started at 2:00 a.m. There was an encounter between the shooter and an off-duty police officer outside of the club who's working security. The officer tried to stop the shooter from getting in. But he got in with an assault rifle and a handgun. And that's when a witness tells us they started hearing loud popping sounds inside the club. One witness told me he couldn't tell me if it was music, part of the show, or simply worse.

He realized it was something worse when he saw people all around him starting to fall to the ground. He took to the ground himself and he was fortunate to crawl out of there. Overnight, we are hearing similar stories of survival. There was one woman who hid in the bathroom and used the bodies of victims to disguise herself from the shooter.

We're also hearing that performers were able to escape through an air vent when police removed an air conditioner. During that three-hour standoff we also learned that the shooter called 911, pledged his allegiance to ISIS and also mentioned the Boston marathon bombers. At about 5:00 a.m., the police decided the negotiation standoff was over and they decided to move in.

As we were out here, it was extremely loud. There were a series of explosions. We have some of that recorded. I want to play it for you now.

And to give you an idea, all of that was happening just blocks from where we were where witnesses were still standing around trying to find out about their friends, where family members were outside trying to find out about their loved ones. Essentially shortly after that, police were able to take out the shooter. He did shoot a police officer. Though he hit in the helmet the police officer is OK. The shooter was taken down. Unfortunately the damage was done by that point -- John. BERMAN: Yes, Boris, again these images that we've seen over the last

24 hours, so, so heart-wrenching. And to think there are still families this morning who do not know the fate of their loved ones.

[04:05:02] Fifty dead, 53 injured. One-third of the people inside this nightclub behind me right now, Boris, were shot in some form or fashion. You can see these pictures right now, these aerials. They had to bash in a wall with a bearcat vehicle. They tried to save whatever whoever they could. They do say they saved dozens of people even with all the tragedy there.

Again our thanks to Boris Sanchez for his continued reporting.

This helmet you're seeing right now, by the way, was worn by one of the officers in that raid. You can see a bullet that Kevlar helmet. The helmet no doubt saved his life. That officer is doing fine this morning.

And this morning investigators are examining the background of the shooter, Omar Mateen. They're trying to find out what they can. They are looking for clues in his home. They're also most specifically looking for connections to ISIS or any other terror groups. Authorities there speaking to the people who knew Mateen. His family. They say -- they claim he was not particularly religious. His ex-wife who says she was beaten by Mateen, says he suffered from some kind of undiagnosed bipolar disorder.

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SITORA YUSUFIY, GUNMAN'S EX-WIFE: Instability, emotional instability, sickness. Mentally -- he was mentally unstable and mentally ill. That's the only explanation I can give. And he was obviously disturbed. Deeply traumatized.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BERMAN: Again investigators have been poring through the location of the crime scene overnight, not to mention the home of the killer.

I want to get the latest on the investigation. Let's bring in justice correspondent Pamela Brown.

PAMELA BROWN, CNN JUSTICE CORRESPONDENT: Well, good morning to you. We have learned that the gunman, 29-year-old Omar Mateen, had been on the FBI's radar several years ago. In fact, in 2013, the FBI had opened up an investigation into him after his coworkers came to the bureau and said that he was making inflammatory remarks that made them believe that he was tied to terrorism.

Ultimately, the FBI did not find any wrongdoing, could not substantiate those remarks that his colleagues said he made. And the FBI closed that case. And then the next year, the FBI interviewed him for a third time in a separate investigation that he was not the subject of. The FBI wanted to see if he was -- had close ties to an American suicide bomber. Ultimately the FBI said that it didn't find that they had a substantive relationship and so the FBI closed that investigation.

So after that, essentially the bureau moved on. And of course, the big question is whether anything was missed. The bureau has been speaking to family members of this gunman, his ex-wife. What they seem to focus on is the notion that he did have anti-gay views. In fact, just recently, the father says that he was upset during an incident in Miami where he saw two men kissing. So it was very evident to them that he had anti-gay sentiment.

At this point, investigators are looking at the possibility of this being a hybrid of whether this is a hate crime or he was targeting the gay community combined with international terrorism. We know he made that 911 call where he said he pledged allegiance to ISIS.

Still a lot to uncover in this investigation, still very early on. Back to you.

BERMAN: All right, our thanks to Pamela Brown here in Orlando.

Let's talk about the investigation and what comes next. Joining me right here on scene is CNN law enforcement analyst Art Roderick. Art was a former assistant director of the U.S. Marshal Service.

Art, thanks so much for being with us. Let's start with what's going on right now. Obviously they are still working this crime scene which is right behind us right now. I can't imagine how long that's going to go on for. And they're also at the home of this killer.

ARTHUR RODERICK, CNN LAW ENFORCEMENT ANALYST: Yes. We got two distinct things going on here. We've got what's going on at the home. They are executing a search warrant, gathering computers, whatever databases they can find there, gaming machines, anything that he's got in that home and then also trying to clear the scene down here. They're probably still trying to identify some bodies.

It's got to be a horrific scene in there. When you're talking about 100 people who are shot in a small venue area. It's got to be -- it's got to be quite a mess to try to not only identify those but also obviously get them out.

BERMAN: So in a crime investigation like this, the number one thing I believe you have to be going after is, is there reason for concern? Could be another attack? Could there be another people out there? There doesn't seem to be that concern here. Orlando Police, the FBI tell us they believe this man acted alone. So what they're going for right now is anyone who may have helped him, any connection he may have had, correct?

RODERICK: Well, they are trying to see if he was in communication with anybody overseas or anybody here locally that possibly could have directed him to do that. I think we're -- they're looking at two things now. Was he inspired or was he also not inspired, but also directed to commit this heinous act. And I think that's what they're looking for now. Who is in as little communication links on his computer, on his social networks, and who was advising him. Obviously I think we know now at this point that the training he received was probably through the security company for those weapons.

[04:10:05] BERMAN: He worked at a security company since 2007.

RODERICK: Right.

BERMAN: Guarding a courthouse, also guarding a residence area right here. He was licensed to carry the two guns.

RODERICK: Right.

BERMAN: That he had with him. Had no problem walking to the store in the last two weeks and buying those guns. And he pledged allegiance to ISIS.

RODERICK: Right.

BERMAN: Twenty minutes into the shooting. What we do not know is if ISIS knew who he was.

RODERICK: Exactly. And not only just pledge, but he did it on a 911 call, which we have never seen in any of these types of incidences before. Usually we have to go back to the social media and find out who they are communicating with, what are they saying on social media. In this particular case, he actually called the police and, you know. put his allegiance out there to ISIS.

BERMAN: There's something here, I think, which concerns a lot of people which is that the FBI knew this guy.

RODERICK: Yes. Right.

BERMAN: They had their eyes on this guy for years. In 2013, they interviewed him twice as part of an investigation because he'd been saying things in the workplace that led people to be concerned. And then in 2014, he was questioned related to a man who was known -- a known al Qaeda supporter, a man who was the first American suicide bomber in Syria. So the FBI talked to this guy three times. They determined he wasn't a threat. He was allowed to go about his business and his business included security, you know, using guns every day.

Did something slip through the cracks here or can this just happen?

RODERICK: It appears, when you look at it from the 30,000 foot level that somebody possibly slipped through the cracks. But the FBI was pretty adamant that all those interviews were inconclusive at the very end. Should they have notified the security company, possibly. They probably should have. I'm sure the FBI is now looking at how they do in all these interviews, all the individuals that they interviewed. But I'm sure there's thousands of them that they've come across that probably fit this same type of profile that they've interviewed and determined that there was nothing there.

In this particular case, we're not exactly 100 percent sure if this individual was completely motivated by his allegiance to ISIS or was this a combination of a hate crime. BERMAN: A hate crime. It's a gay club behind us.

RODERICK: Right. Exactly. Exactly.

BERMAN: It could have been both for sure.

All right. Art Roderick, thanks so much for being with us. This investigation does continue this morning. A lot more to discuss in terms of what is discovered.

So the big question we have been talking about right here is, was the Orlando killer connected to ISIS or was it something else?

We'll give you the new details of what we're learning next.

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[04:16:38] BERMAN: John Berman back in Orlando. The Pulse nightclub right behind me where investigators are still working the scene. Law enforcement authorities there examining the electronic devices belonging to the Orlando gunman. They want to determine whether he was self-radicalized, whether he did this himself, or whether he was under some kind of direction from a terror group, perhaps ISIS.

There has been no direct claim of responsibility and even known jihadi forms. But some ISIS sympathizers are praising the gunman as an Islamic State fighter.

Our Nic Robertson is tracking the latest developments for us live from London this morning.

You know, Nic, investigators here will tell you with 50 people dead, 53 injured, the difference between ISIS inspired and ISIS directed, it certainly doesn't matter directly to the victims here but it is of interest to authorities because it gets to the issue of influence of this group.

NIC ROBERTSON, CNN INTERNATIONAL DIPLOMATIC EDITOR: I guess the issue of influence and I guess the issue of the potentiality for a wider network or other contacts of his that may harbor similar views.

Look, you've got to look at it this way, John. This was an adrenaline-fueled event. Yet he stopped 20 minutes into that to make a call, the 911 call, and to claim that he's doing this on behalf of ISIS. That takes a degree of pre-planning on his own part. Not saying he was directed to do it on his own part. We also know that -- and he knows that he'd been under the scrutiny of FBI before. He hasn't made any other social media comments about links to ISIS.

It does appear that he's claiming this whole ISIS in the middle of the event, and he has avoided making the connection to ISIS prior to this and has been under scrutiny. That would give away what he was about to do. So there does seem to be a degree of planning on his part beyond buying the weapons, rented the vehicle, turning up at the location at that particular time that he knew how he was going to carry this out. He knew in his own mind how he was going to associate this with ISIS.

But those -- the important details of does this connect him to a wider network that perhaps gave him some direction, what we do know is, broadly speaking, ISIS spokesman Adnani, in the last few weeks called for attacks during Ramadan. Ramadan began last week. ISIS has called for this type of attack in the past. So although again this may not be directed, the inspiration given the time of year, Ramadan, may have been ramped up and elevated. He seems to have known going into this precisely how he was going to handle it -- John.

BERMAN: No. Exactly the kind of attack that ISIS wants and has called for. They've called for these attacks all over the world for years now. But whether or not it was specifically directed, Nic, as you say, that's exactly what is being investigated right now.

Nic Robertson for us in London. Thank you so much.

President Obama has called the Orlando nightclub shooting an act of terror and an act of hate. He gave a very brief statement to the nation. The president called the shooting especially heartbreaking for the LGBT community. And he once again called for stricter limits on access to firearms.

Want to get more on what the president had to say and what was behind what he said from Chris Frates at the White House.

[04:20:04] CHRIS FRATES, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning. President Obama once again spoke to the nation after a mass shooting. But this time he was talking about the deadliest event of its kind in U.S. history. The president addressed the nation after more than a dozen of these mass shootings. And Sunday the president called this an act of terror and reminded the nation that the shooter targeted LGBT Americans.

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BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: 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.

This is a sobering reminder that attacks on any American, regardless of race, ethnicity, religion, or sexual orientation is an attack on all of us. And on the fundamental values of equality and dignity that define us as a country. And no act of hate or terror will ever change who we are or the values that make us Americans.

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FRATES: Now it didn't take long for this tragedy to hit the campaign trail with Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump tweeting about the shooting. And today, we expect to hear more from Donald Trump. He had originally planned to give a speech in New Hampshire slamming Hillary Clinton. But his campaign announced on Sunday that he is changing subjects and will address terrorism, national security and immigration. And Clinton's campaign is already slamming Trump for his response to these attacks, saying Trump has no real plans to keep the nation safe and it's all insult and attacks and no solutions.

So this could get real ugly real fast. Back to you.

BERMAN: All right. Chris Frates for us in Washington. Thanks a lot, Chris.

Tributes to the victims of the attacks here, they are pouring in from across the country. Not to mention everywhere inside this community. That as another man is arrested with an arsenal of weapons on his way to another gay pride event. Stay with us.

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[04:26:29] ROMANS: Welcome back to EARLY START this morning. The producers of the Tony Awards decided to go on with the show last night in New York. The NYPD tripling its security presence outside the Beacon Theater using an abundance of caution in the wake of that Orlando terrorist attack. Several streets in the neighborhood were shutdown with dozens of officers conducting I.D. checks on drivers and show guests. The producers of "Hamilton" decided to drop a musket firing scene from their performance because the actors felt uncomfortable. And host James Corden opened the show with a tribute to the Orlando victims.

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JAMES CORDEN, TONY AWARDS HOST: Our hearts go out to all of those affected by this atrocity. All we can say is you are not on your own. Your tragedy is our tragedy. Theater is a place where every race, creed, sexuality and gender is equal, is embraced and is loved. Hate will never win.

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ROMANS: Tony Award organizers dedicated last night's show to those directly affected by the nightclub tragedy.

Authorities in Los Angeles trying to figure out why an Indiana man was heading to a gay pride festival with an arsenal of weapons. Police say they arrested James Wesley Howell after finding three assault rifles, high capacity magazines, and explosive materials inside his car. Now at first, officials inaccurately reported Howell said he wanted to harm the L.A. Pride festival. Turns out the 20-year-old stated he was heading to the event but he did not explain why.

The worst mass shooting in U.S. history. 50 dead. Fewer than half of those victims have been identified. Family members are desperate to hear if their loved ones are OK. We are live in Orlando next.

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