Eddie Justice, the man behind those text messages that went viral during the Pulse nightclub shooting in Orlando has died. More inside…
New details are emerging about the horrific mass shooting that took the lives of 49 (according to new reports) people and injured 53 others at Pulse nightclub in Orlando, Florida. A gunman reportedly walked into the gay nightclub around 2AM Sunday morning with an assault weapon and a handgun to carry out the most deadly mass shooting ever in the U.S.
Eddie Justice, an accountant who lived in Orlando, heard gunshots ringing throughout in the club and ran to a nearby women’s restroom to take cover. As he hid in the bathroom while the gunman terrorized the club, he sent messages to his mother alerting her to call 911. In a series of texts, he told his mother someone was shooting in the club and that he was hiding in the bathroom. He feared for his life telling his mother he was going to die.
“Mommy I love you. In club they shooting,” Eddie texted.
“U ok,” his mother, Mina Justice responded.
“Trapp in bathroom,” Eddie responded.
“What club,” Mina asked. Those texts were sent at 2:06AM. About 30 minutes later:
“Call them mommy. Now. I’m tell I’m bathroom. He’s coming. I’m gonna die,” Eddie texted his mother. Those were the final absolutely heartbreaking texts she received from her only son.
According to the NY Daily News, Mina Justice painfully waited for hours before her son’s name showed up on an official list of the dead, which by early Monday included only 10 of the 49 people who were shot and killed.
The names of the other deceased victims can be found here.
The gunman was killed in an exchange of gunfire with police. SWAT officers entered the nightclub while the gunman was holding hostages inside and indicated that further loss of life was "imminent." Before he was gunned down, the shooter called 911 and pledged his allegiance to ISIS. As of now, federal officials have no evidence that he had any direct contact with ISIS.
New developments in the terrorism investigation reveal the gunman traveled to Saudi Arabia twice in recent years, according to federal officials. He traveled in 2011 and 2012 for the Umrah pilgrimage to Mecca, a spokesman for Saudi Arabia's Ministry of Interior told NBC News producer Lubna Hussain.
CNN reports the Orlando shooter tried to buy military-grade body armor weeks before the shooting, but the store refused to sell it to him. It’s still unclear why the armor wasn’t sold to him.
Federal officials are now looking into whether any of the gunman’s relatives had any idea he was planning to carry out a shooting massacre at Pulse nightclub and failed to alert the authorities. They have yet to conclude anything. His family and ex-wife have admitted, though, that he had an aversion to the gay community and also allegedly beat his ex-wife daily.
The gunman’s father has issued out a public apology via A Facebook video on behalf of his son saying,
"I am really sorry and have expressed this to the people of the United States, especially in this holy month of Ramadan. What he has done has shocked me … I ask God for help and guidance."
The NY Daily News used today’s cover to blame the National Rifle Association for the massacre in Orlando.
There is also new video of one young lady named Amanda Alvear (who has been confirmed as one of the deceased) who caught a video of the gunfire erupting inside of Pulse nightclub while she was on the dance floor.
WARNING - This video may be disturbing to some:
Just an extremely sad and infuriating situation all around. Our thoughts and prayers are with the families and friends affected by this cowardly act of hate and terrorism.
Photos: AP/Facebook/NY Daily News
