(Lewiston) A paranoid, a conspiracy theorist who possibly heard voices: the portrait of the alleged author of the Lewiston killings, Robert Card, is becoming clearer.
“The individual felt like everyone was talking about him,” said Michael Sauschuck, commissioner of the Maine Department of Public Safety.
“We think that’s what pushed him to go to these two places specifically,” he added about the bowling alley and the bar-restaurant where the suspect opened fire Wednesday evening, two popular meeting points within the community. The tragedy left 18 people aged between 14 and 76 dead and 13 injured, three of whom are still hospitalized in intensive care.
Is there a motive? Clearly, there is a mental health issue.
Michael Sauschuck, commissioner of the Maine Department of Public Safety
Robert Card, 40, was a U.S. Army reservist and shooting instructor.
According to the Associated Press, Maine police were notified several weeks ago of “veiled threats” made by Robert Card. Two local police chiefs told the news agency that a statewide alert was issued in mid-September to monitor the reservist because he had made threats against his base. Having found no trace of him, they would have moved on.
These testimonies are consistent with those of his family. In an interview with NBC News, Robert Card’s sister-in-law, Katie Card, said he was hearing voices. The family even contacted the police and the army to express their concern in this regard.
Despite this, Robert Card’s case was not flagged under Maine’s “yellow flag law,” which triggers an evaluation to determine whether to revoke the gun license of a person who suffers from a psychiatric problem.
In the United States, gun control activists see this as an example of a law that is too permissive.
“One thing that is very important for me to emphasize is that although there appears to be a mental health element to this scenario, the vast, vast majority of people who have a mental health diagnosis do not will never harm themselves or others and are not a danger to the community,” said Commissioner Michael Sauschuck.
Legal weapons
The body of Robert Card was found Friday evening about twenty kilometers from the scene of the tragedy after a two-day manhunt which forced the confinement of the inhabitants of a large area. The suspect allegedly killed himself with his firearm.
The discovery of the body made it possible to bring forward the lifting of the confinement, which was planned for Saturday morning. “The search for Mr. Card is over. The hunt can resume,” indicated a Public Security alert sent to all cell phones late Friday evening.
Authorities revealed Saturday morning that Robert Card was found in an 18-wheel trailer located in a parking lot adjacent to Maine Recycling, where he had previously worked. He had two weapons with him. A third, a long weapon, was found in his vehicle, a white Subaru that he had abandoned near a river. All of his firearms had been legally acquired.
PHOTO MARTIN TREMBLAY, THE PRESS
Robert Card’s body was found inside a trailer at a recycling center in Lisbon, more than 12 miles from Lewiston.
It was the owner of the recycling company, located in the neighboring city of Lisbon, who encouraged the police to search the dozens of trailers filled with recyclable materials.
Commissioner Michael Sauschuck said the suspect was wearing the same clothes when he was found as in the video images captured during the shooting.
It is impossible, for the moment, to know how long he had been dead. “It’s the autopsy that will reveal it,” Mr. Sauschuck said.
The police also revealed the contents of the letter that Robert Card had left behind in his residence.
“It was a paper type note, I’m not going to read it to you, but basically, it’s a note addressed to his family which gives the password to his phone and his bank account number . I wouldn’t describe it as an explicit suicide letter, but the tone and content suggested that the person would soon be gone,” Sauschuck said.
Towards a return to normal
Despite the discovery of the suspect’s body, the investigation will continue for several days and at several crime scenes. Police received 821 tips from the public which they are still analyzing. Twelve search warrants were executed.
PHOTO MARTIN TREMBLAY, THE PRESS
The city can now begin the process of collective mourning following the announcement of the death of Robert Card, the alleged perpetrator of the Lewiston, Maine, shootings that left 18 dead and 13 injured.
In the city of Lewiston, life began to return to normal on Saturday. Several hundred journalists who had stormed the region began to leave.
A vigil in memory of the deceased will take place this Sunday evening. Two psychological help centers were opened on Saturday, one for people present during the shootings, the other for the general population.