Watch CBS News

Minnesota Woman Knew Orlando Shooter As Security Guard At Florida Residence

MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) -- Marta Winter is from Wayzata and lives part-time at PGA Village in Port St. Lucie, Fla., the gated community where Orlando shooter Omar Mateen was a security guard.

"I would see him every day," Winter told WCCO's Jordana Green on Tuesday. "I'm a little unsafe and a little uneasy knowing that, you know, if he really wanted to, he could have done something to the community. Done something to put us at risk."

Winter said she would usually see Mateen when he was working the night shift at the complex. From what she observed, Mateen was nice to women. But she also sensed some underlying conflict.

"He was very different," she said. "He would say hello, and sometimes he would try to flirt with you. If he was in a good mood that day, he would be nice. If he was kind of off, he would rub you the wrong way. He would."

Co-workers have been saying that Mateen frequently made homophobic and racial comments. Winter never heard any of those remarks, but knew others security guards were concerned about him being there.

"When you would see him, you just didn't think of him like that," Winter said. "It seemed like he tried to fit in with everyone."

People who frequent the Pulse nightclub in Orlando, where the shooting happened, have been saying they saw Mateen at the club a number of times, possibly trying to pick up men. Winter said she never thought Mateen was gay.

"No, I never got that," she said. "Ever."

Winter was not in Florida when the shooting happened. She now feels the PGA Village's security company, G4S, should do a better job researching job candidates.

"There's a lot of people that I know that knew him," said Winter. "It's just scary that (he) was in our gated community."

View CBS News In
CBS News App Open
Chrome Safari Continue
Be the first to know
Get browser notifications for breaking news, live events, and exclusive reporting.