U.S. Official Says Orlando Shooter's Widow Arrested in Bay Area

The widow of the gunman who killed 49 people at a gay Orlando nightclub has been acquitted on charges of lying to the FBI and helping her husband in the 2016 attack.

Noor Salman was found not guilty of charges of obstruction and providing material support to a terrorist organization.

Salman was married to Omar Mateen when he attacked the Pulse nightclub.

Prosecutors say Salman knew about Mateen's guns, his affinity for violent Muslim extremist videos and his intention to attack a location, but did nothing to stop him.

Prosecutors said Salman and her husband scouted out potential targets together — including Disney World's shopping and entertainment complex — and she knew he was buying ammunition for his AR-15 in preparation for a jihadi attack. She knew that he had a sick fascination with violent jihadi videos and an affinity for Islamic State group websites and gave him a "green light to commit terrorism," prosecutors said.  

"None of the victims that night knew the horrific events that would unfold. No one knew except for two people: Omar Mateen and his wife," Assistant U.S. Attorney James Mandolfo said. "The defendant gave Omar Mateen the green light to commit terrorism on behalf of ISIS."

Defense attorneys described Salman as an easily manipulated woman with a low IQ. They said Salman, who was born in California to Palestinian parents, was abused by her husband, who cheated on her with other women and concealed much of his life from her.  

Attorney Charles Swift argued there was no way Salman knew that Mateen would attack the Pulse nightclub because even he didn't know he would attack it until moments before the shooting. 

"It's a horrible, random, senseless killing by a monster," Swift said during closing arguments. "But it wasn't preplanned. The importance to this case is that if he didn't know, she couldn't know."

Salman's statement to the FBI in the hours after the attack appeared to play a key role in the case. In the statement, Salman said over "the last two years, Omar talked to me about jihad." (The Associated Press, CBS News contributed to this report.)