Police have identified a military-trained firearms instructor as the man they’re looking for in connection with several mass shootings in Lewiston, Maine, Wednesday night.
Robert Card, 40, allegedly opened fire at a bar and a bowling alley, killing at least 20 people and throwing Maine’s second largest city into chaos.
Androscoggin County Sheriff Eric Samson told the Bangor Daily News that police located Card’s vehicle on Route 196 but had not found him.
Samson said seven people were found dead at Sparetime Recreation and an unconfirmed number at Schemengees Bar & Grille. Samson said some people who ran from the scene may have been shot.
Maine State Police issued a shelter in place for Lewiston and later extended it to the whole of Androscoggin County, while police released security camera images showing the suspect, now identified as Card, carrying an AR-style weapon and moving with purpose.
Trauma centers were reportedly on stand-by as far away as Portland and even Boston. Schools in the area reported that they will be closed on Thursday.
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According to the Associated Press, Card was trained as a firearms instructor at a US Army Reserve training facility in Maine and was recently committed to a mental health facitility, according to a state police bulletin. The document said Card reported hearing voices and had threatened to carry out a shooting at a training base in Saco, Maine.
The images of the suspect show a man with short brown hair and a beard, in a brown sweatshirt and dark pants. It’s not known if he is the only suspect, and police also released a photo of the Subaru Outback he is believed to be driving. Central Maine Medical Center said they are responding to a “mass casualty” situation.
The Lewiston Police Department said the locations being investigated currently are Schemengees Bar and Grille, in the central part of the city near the Androscoggin River, and Sparetime Recreation, in the north of the city. WGME said another possible location was at a Walmart Distribution Center in the south of the city.
Shortly before 11 p.m., a large police presence blocked off roads in nearby Lisbon Falls in the Route 196 area, according to WMTW.
Gov. Janet Mills issued a statement saying she was “aware of and have been briefed” on the situation.
“I urge all people in the area to follow the direction of State and local enforcement,” she said. “I will to continue to monitor the situation and remain in close contact with public safety officials.”
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[Featured image: Robert Card/Lewiston Police Department]
