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WASHINGTON, Jan. 16 (Xinhua) -- The wife of Orlando nightclub gunman Omar Mateen was arrested by the FBI on Monday in connection with her husband's shooting claiming 49 lives in June, 2016, officials said.
Noor Salman was taken into custody in San Francisco, facing charges of aiding and abetting, as well as obstruction of justice in the case of the worst mass shooting in American history, said a CBS News report.
Mateen pledged allegiance to the extreme group Islamic State during the attack.
"I can confirm the arrest did occur," Attorney General Loretta Lynch said on MSNBC.
"This is a matter that we continue to take very seriously," she said. "We said from the beginning we were going to look at every aspect of this case, every aspect of this shooters life - to determine not just why did he take these actions, but who else knew about them, was anyone else involved, is there any other accountability that needs to be had here in this case."
Mateen and Salman exchanged texts during his rampage, after Mateen's mother called her in the middle of the night, asking where he was, a source close to the family told NBC News in June.
Salman remained silent until November, when she told the New York Times that she did not know her husband was planning an attack.
She is expected to make her first appearance on Tuesday.
