Hundreds of police swept across the state of Maine in search of a man wanted in connection with a mass shooting at a bar and bowling alley in downtown Lewiston, as news outlets reported the death toll ranging from 16 to 22, while dozens Others were injured. ,
Officials said there were several casualties in Wednesday’s shooting, but declined to provide figures.
State and local police identified 40-year-old Robert R. Card, who was reportedly committed to a mental health facility over the summer, as a person of interest in the case. Earlier, he posted photos on Facebook of a bearded man wearing a gray hoodie and jeans at a crime scene, who appeared to be holding a semi-automatic rifle in firing position.
“We have hundreds of police officers across the state of Maine working on this case to locate Mr. Card, who is a person of interest,” Maine Public Safety Commissioner Mike Soschuk said at a news conference.
Police found a white SUV they believe Card had driven to the city of Lisbon, about 7 miles (11 km) to the southeast, and Sauschak said people were told to stay indoors in both Lewiston and Lisbon. Was asked for.
Multiple media reported that a Maine law enforcement bulletin identified Card as a trained firearms instructor and member of the U.S. Army Reserve who recently reported that he had mental health issues, including hearing voices. It also said he threatened to shoot up a National Guard base.
“Card was committed to a mental health facility for two weeks during the summer of 2023 and was later released,” the notice from the Maine Information and Analysis Center said.
Reuters could not authenticate the bulletin. The Associated Press reported that it was relayed to law enforcement officials.
The Army did not immediately respond to requests for information about the card, including details of its service record.
The bloodshed shook Maine, a mainly rural state in the northeastern corner of the US bordering Canada.
Police said the shooting began shortly before 7 pm local time. The bar and bowling alley are approximately four miles (6.5 km) apart.
Lewiston is a former textile center and city of 38,000 people in Androscoggin County, about 35 miles (56 km) north of Maine’s largest city, Portland.
Chris Brown, president of the gun safety advocacy group Brady, said, “An entertainment center. A bowling alley. A neighborhood bar. Places where Americans frequent and should feel safe…these are the crimes of multiple shootings tonight in Maine. There are views.” in a statement.
According to Brady, Maine lacks several key types of gun safety laws, including assault weapons regulation, universal background checks and “red flag” laws that allow people who are legally deemed dangerous to be temporarily disarmed. Allow.
Auburn Mayor Jason Levesque told reporters that at a reunification center across the Androscoggin River in Lewiston’s “sister city” Auburn, some families were learning that relatives who had been at the bar and bowling alley had been killed in the shooting.
Levesque said officers were interviewing witnesses “of all ages” to the shooting at an undisclosed secure location Wednesday night.
A US official in Washington said President Joe Biden has been briefed and will continue to receive updates.
The White House said the president spoke personally by phone with Maine Governor Janet Mills, Senators Angus King and Susan Collins, and Congressman Jared Golden about the shooting in Lewiston and offered full federal support in the wake of the attack.
The range of estimated deaths would be equal to the number of murders typically occurring in Maine in any given year. According to the Maine State Police, the number of annual murders in the state has fluctuated between 16 and 29 since 2012.
The number of shootings in the US in which four or more people are shot has increased since the COVID-19 pandemic began in 2020, with 647 incidents in 2022 and 679 incidents in 2023, based on July trends. Estimated, according to data from the Gun Violence Archive.
The deadliest modern American mass shooting on record is the 2017 killing of 58 people by a gunman firing from a high-rise hotel at a country music festival in Las Vegas.
