A massive manhunt is on for the man who went on a shooting rampage at a bowling alley and a billiards hall in Maine on Wednesday night, leaving 18 dead and 13 injured.
Police have identified the suspect as Robert Card, a 40-year-old army reservist and firearms instructor.
Videos by VICE
Law enforcement held a press conference on Thursday morning, as the manhunt for Card entered its sixteenth hour.
“He should be considered armed and dangerous,” said State Police Col. William Ross. “We believe he is someone who should not be approached.”
Ross says that investigators found Card’s vehicle abandoned at a boat launch in Lisbon, eight miles from Lewiston, where the shootings took place.
Ross says that the local communications center received a 911 call at 6:56 p.m. on Wednesday evening reporting a shooter at Sparetime Recreation Center, a bowling alley.
At 7:08 p.m, the comms center received several 911 calls reporting an active shooter inside Schemengees Bar and Grille restaurant, located four miles south of Sparetime Recreation Center.
Police who responded to the scenes found seven people dead from gunshot wounds at the bowling alley, and another eight dead at the billiards hall (one was found dead outside). All but one of the victims who died at the scene were male. Multiple people were transferred to area hospitals, where another three victims succumbed to their injuries and died.
The ages of the victims are currently unknown, and only eight had been identified at the time of Thursday morning’s press conference. There is an arrest warrant for Card, who is wanted for eight counts of murder so far. The number of counts will increase as coroners identify additional victims.
Maine Gov. Janet Mills opened Thursday’s press conference, apologizing for her hoarse voice—which she said was the result of working through the night. Mills described Lewiston as a “close-knit community.”
“This city didn’t deserve this assault on its peace of mind and sense of security,” Mills said. “No words can fully measure the grief that people will be feeling today.”
There is a shelter-in-place order for Lewiston, Lisbon, and Bowdoin, where Card is believed to be a resident.
Lewiston police chief Dave St. Pierre described the efforts to catch Card as an “all hands on deck approach.” State police are taking the lead on the investigation, with huge assistance from local and federal law enforcement.
According to a bulletin issued by the Maine Information Analysis Center, Card is a trained firearms instructor who is a member of the U.S. Army Reserve.
The bulletin also stated that Card “recently reported mental health issues, including hearing voices, and threats to shoot up the National Guard Base in Saco, ME.” Card was committed to a mental health facility earlier this summer for two weeks and subsequently released, according to the bulletin.
Lewiston is the second largest city in Maine—having a population of 37,000—and is located about 45 minutes north of Portland. To deal with the mass casualty event, the state called in all off-duty police officers and turned the Lewiston armory into a triage center.
Correction: A previous version of this story said the capitol of Maine is Portland. Maine’s capitol is Augusta.
