The man who opened fire at a gay nightclub in Orlando, Fla. Sunday morning, killing 50 people and sending 53 more to the hospital was previously married to a woman from New Jersey who claims he used to abuse her.

According to NJ Advance Media, records show that 29-year-old Omar Mateen was once married to Sitora Yusufiy, formerly of Edison and Lawrenceville. After meeting online, she decided to move to Florida and the couple married in 2009, the Washington Post reports. They divorced in 2011, the NJ Advance Media states.

Online public records show that a marriage license was issued to Omar Mir Seddique Mateen and Sitora Alisherzoda Yusufiy in St. Lucie County in 2009.

Yusufiy spoke to the Washington Post, telling the publication that her ex-husband "would just come home and start beating me up because the laundry wasn’t finished or something like that."

According to public records Mateen had a permit to carry a concealed weaponed. His license was set to expire on Sept. 13, 2017. The Washington Post article states that he had also been a licensed security guard, working for G4S, a security company in Florida.

The shooting at Pulse nightclub took place at about 2 a.m. Sunday morning. Police say Mateen entered the club and opened fire before taking hostages. At about 5 a.m., Mateen was shot during a gunfight after a SWAT team entered the club to rescue the hostages. Police are still trying to determine a motive.

NJ State Police said Sunday morning that there is "no immediate threat" to New Jersey in the wake of the deadly massacre. Authorities were investigating the attack as a possible act of terrorism.

The massacre, now being called the largest mass shooting in American history, sent shockwaves through the gay community as Pride Month celebrations took place throughout the nation. In Maplewood, thousands flocked to the North Jersey Pride Festival, but despite the cheerful tone of the annual event, news of Sunday's shooting cast a shadow over the festival.

Toniann Antonelli is a social content producer for NJ 101.5. She can be reached at toniann.antonelli@townsquaremedia.com, or on Twitter @ToniRadio1015.

 

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