When news spread that Orlando gunman Omar Mateen had been employed as a security guard by G4S, an already beleaguered security contractor based in Great Britain, investors who had already thrown shade at the company sold off their stock in rapid fashion.
The plunge in value from the opening until the close was precipitous, like a mountain climber atop Everest losing his grip and falling for miles and miles without ever recovering. In fact, the only thing that stopped the stock slide was the end of trading.
When the day was done, the value of the G4S stock was down $282 million, according to CNBC.
The company did issue a statement about its connection to Mateen, written by John Kenning, Regional CEO:
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“We are deeply shocked by this tragic event. We can confirm that Omar Mateen had been employed by G4S since Sept. 10, 2007. Mateen was off-duty at the time of the incident. He was employed at a gated retirement community in South Florida.
Mateen underwent company screening and background checks when he was recruited in 2007 and the check revealed nothing of concern. His screening was repeated in 2013 with no findings.
We are cooperating fully with all law enforcement authorities, including the FBI, as they conduct their investigations. In 2013, we learned that Mateen had been questioned by the FBI but that the inquiries were subsequently closed. We were not made aware of any alleged connections between Mateen and terrorist activities, and were unaware of any further FBI investigations.
Our thoughts and prayers remain with the victims of this unspeakable tragedy, and their friends and families.”
