Maine: A US Army reservist accused of spraying a bowling alley and bar with gunfireinLewiston,Maine, killing 18 people, wasfounddeadfrom a self-inflicted gunshot woundinarecyclingplanttrailerafter a 48-hour manhunt,policesaid on Saturday.
The body of Robert R. Card, 40, was discovered on Friday night at arecyclingplantinLisbon Falls where he worked at one point, less than a mile from wherepolicehadfoundhis abandoned getaway vehicle shortly after hisshootingspree on Wednesday night.
AMaineStatePolicetactical team discovered Card’s bodyinan unlockedtrailerinan overflow parking lot of therecyclingplant,MainePublic Safety Commissioner Mike Sauschuck told reporters on Saturday.
Officers had cleared the plant twiceinthe course of their search, Sauschuck said, as they believed Card had some “employment relation” to the business, but had missed the extra parking lot, where about 60 boxtrailersfull of crushed plastic and metal were parked, he said.
Officials said they recovered a long rifleinCard’s abandoned white Subaru and two guns on his body, without confirming the make and model. All the weapons were apparently purchased by Card legally, a representative for the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives said.
A total of 18 people were killed and 13 others were woundedinWednesday night’s carnage, which began when the gunman opened fire with a rifle inside the Just-In-Time Recreation bowling alley, then launched another attack minutes later at Schemengees Bar & Grille Restaurant a few miles away.
Officials have not confirmed a possiblemotivefor the gun violence, but Sauschuck said on Saturday that there was “a mental health component” to the tragedy.
Sauschuck saidpolicefounda note left at Card’s house, addressed to a loved one, which listed the passcode to his phone and bank account information.
“I wouldn’t describe it as an explicit suicide note, but the tone and tenor was that the individual was not going to be around,” Sauschuck said.
Theshootingsand prolonged manhunt terrorized the normally bustling but serene community of Lewiston, a former textile hub and the second-most populous cityinMaine. It lies on the banks of the Androscoggin River, about 35 miles (56 km) north of the state’s largest city, Portland.
(Published 28 October 2023, 17:43 IST)