Orlando gunman told wife of interest in terror attack

Prosecutors quoted by Fox News said they were seeking to charge Noor Salman as an accessory to 49 counts of murder and 53 counts of attempted murder, as well as with failure to warn authorities about the impending attack.

Mateen made calls to emergency 911 dispatchers from the club in which he pledged loyalty to ISIS leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, whose organisation controls parts of Iraq and Syria.

Some have suggested Mateen’s familiarity with the club may explain why he chose Pulse, rather than other clubs closer to his home in Port St Lucie, about 130 miles (200km) south of Orlando.

She told the Federal Bureau of Investigation that she once drove him to the gay nightclub, Pulse, because he wanted to scope it out.

If Mateen threatened her in any way, Salman can use a “duress” defense by saying she was too frightened to alert authorities, Heaphy said, adding that Salman’s cooperation with investigators will also likely help her case.

“I don’t know what they are”, he said.

The 30-year-old could also be prosecuted for failing to tell cops what the ISIS sympathiser was planning.

Law enforcement sources confirmed to CBS News correspondent Jeff Pegues that Mateen visited Disney World at least twice this year, once in April and again this month.

Mateen said he couldn’t forgive his son and expressed sadness for the victims.

As the events in Orlando continue to weigh heavy on the minds of New Yorkers, the wife of the man behind the deadly shooting is being scrutinized over how much she knew about the attack in advance. He said authorities are talking to hundreds of people and investigating everyone associated with Mateen, including family, friends and business associates. She may now face charges.

Seddique Mateen said he only learned about those claims through news reports, but doesn’t believe his son was gay.

A former classmate of Mateen from his 2006 police academy class, said Mateen had asked him out and said he had visited gay bars with him.

Salman, unlike Mateen’s first wife, Sitora Yusufiy, who came forward publicly to talk about his alleged abusive behavior and to respond to questions about his sexual orientation, has not spoken out publicly.