At least 18 people were murdered, and 13 more were injured when a gunman opened fire in a bowling alley and a bar in Lewiston, Maine, using an AR 15-style weapon.
The town has been placed on lockdown as police search for 40-year-old US Army reserve firearms instructor Robert Card, who was treated for mental health issues at a hospital for two weeks this summer. The suspect’s white 2013 Subaru was located near the Lisbon boat pier about seven miles southeast of Lewiston, but Card was nowhere to be seen.
Dramatic film shows panicked patrons fleeing the Sparetime Recreation bowling alley as CCTV photographs show the shooter pointing his rifle as he entered the building. People in the area have been advised to secure their homes.
Card has previously mentioned hearing voices and making threats against his Saco, Maine, National Guard installation. When he stormed inside the bowling alley at 7:15 p.m. local time, he was carrying an AR 15-style weapon equipped with a laser optic.
The second site, Schemengees Bar and Grille, was roughly four miles away, yet police still received reports reporting gunfire there.
There have been 565 mass shootings in the United States this year, and this one is the deadliest. Auburn Middle School has been turned into a reunification facility, with armed police conducting searches of all visitors.
After the active shooter incident in Lewiston, Maine, the Boston Division of the FBI announced that it was prepared to assist with the search. Evidence response, investigative and tactical support, and victim aid are coordinated with local, state, and federal law enforcement partners throughout the state.
The Caucasian male in combat boots, black pants, and a brown shirt walked into the Sparetime recreation center, brandishing an AR-15-style rifle with a laser optic.
Lewiston police released an image of a white station wagon they were searching for, which may have had a black bumper.
The town of 36,000 inhabitants is 35 miles north of Portland and 35 miles south of the state capital, Augusta, and police have been dispatched to the area.
Across the Androscoggin River in Auburn, residents have been advised to stay inside. Classes for Thursday have been canceled at Bats College, a private liberal arts institution in Lewiston. Democratic Representative Chellie Pingree was outraged by the shooting and said that there are many bereaved families in Maine despite the state’s lack of major cities.
