Police searching for suspect in Lewiston mass shootings

A lockdown is in place across Androscoggin County after what appears to be the deadliest shooting in Maine history. It was the country’s 36th mass killing this year.

Eighteen people were killed and 13 injured in what was the worst mass shooting incident in Maine history, as a manhunt involving at least 100 law enforcement personnel was underway in Maine Thursday morning.

Gov. Janet Mills, saying she was "deeply saddened," updated the public at a news conference Thursday morning.

"This is a dark day for Maine," she said, adding firmly that "we will heal together."

The suspect in the shootings was still at large Thursday afternoon. Authorities also released a timeline of the events.

Authorities said Thursday that 40-year-old Robert R. Card II is a suspect in the deaths. Arrest warrants have been issued for eight counts of murder and that number will likely grow as the victims are formally identified.

Card, a resident of Bowdoin, is a firearms instructor trained by the military, according to a police bulletin viewed by the Associated Press, and was committed to a mental health facility for two weeks this past summer.

"The document also said Card had reported hearing voices and had threatened to carry out a shooting at the military training base in Saco, Maine," the AP reported.

The Lewiston Sun Journal reported that police, fire and rescue personnel descended on Sparetime Recreation, which was recently renamed Just-In-Time Recreation, on Mollison Way about 7:15 p.m. during a youth bowling night.

Shortly afterward, reports came in that there was another shooting 4 miles away at Schemengees Bar & Grille on Lincoln Street.

"In a split second your world gets turn upside down for no good reason,'' the bar and grill said in a statement released on its Facebook page.

Col. William Ross of the Maine State Police said Thursday that seven people were shot and killed at Just-In-Time Recreation, including one woman and six males. He said eight people were killed at the bar and grill. Three others died at hospitals.

It appears to be the worst mass shooting in Maine history. The Associated Press reported that the shooting was the country’s 36th mass killing this year. The AP and USA Today maintains a database with Northeastern University. At least 188 people have died in those killings, which are defined as incidents in which four or more people have died within a 24-hour period, not including the killer — the same definition used by the FBI.

Separately, The Trace, a nonprofit dedicated to covering guns and shootings, reported in early October that in 2023 there have been 531 incidents in which four or more people were wounded or killed with guns. The Trace cited Gun Violence Archive, which tracks shootings through news and police reports.

A shelter-in-place order was ordered for Lewiston, Lisbon and Bowdoin, officials said Thursday. People are asked to stay off the streets.

A vehicle of interest was located in Lisbon Wednesday night, according to a notice distributed to The Maine Monitor, and law enforcement is asking Lisbon residents to shelter in place as authorities work in the area to locate Card.

Those who notice anything suspicious are asked to call 911.

Edward Davis, who was Boston's police commissioner during the 2013 Marathon bombings, said the shelter-in-place order was somewhat similar to what occurred in his city during a days long manhunt for the suspects. One big difference: greater Boston is an urban environment, whereas the area being searched in Maine is largely rural.

Davis said investigators typically scour social media, interview acquaintances, identify possible vehicles and boats, track cellphone usage, and look at surveillance video to locate a suspect who is trying to evade police.

Authorities said Thursday that investigators from all over Maine and New England were assisting in the investigation, along with FBI and ATF agents, and others.

In Auburn, Maine Monitor reporter Emily Bader reported that Mayor Jason Levesque said that at least 40-50 people were reunified with their worried loved ones at Auburn Middle School shortly after midnight Thursday. They had been brought over by a city bus after giving statements to police. More people were likely to be brought to the school as the night went on.

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“At this point, there is a significant amount of shock going on with people that were actually witnesses," Levesque said. “Obviously when I was bringing people in that were looking for their loved ones, there is fear, there is panic, there’s worry. Understandable."

“But the people that were actually there tonight, it was what I didn’t hear. It’s shock. It’s hard for me to explain," Levesque said. “I just want people to get home and hold their families."

One man told the Monitor that his adult daughter had started her first night at a bowling league at Sparetime Recreation. He said his daughter was next to the shooting suspect at the bowling alley when he burst in. She bolted out of the bowling alley and into the nearby woods.

“I have four daughters and she’s the toughest but this destroyed her," the man said.

Melinda Small, the owner of Legends Sports Bar and Grill, told the Associated Press that her staff immediately locked their doors and moved all 25 customers and employees away from the doors after a customer reported hearing about the shooting at the bowling alley less than a quarter-mile away around 7 p.m.

“I am honestly in a state of shock. I am blessed that my team responded quickly and everyone is safe,” Small told the Associated Press. “But the same time, my heart is broken for this area and for what everyone is dealing with. I just feel numb.”

Lewiston Mayor Carl Sheline, in a post on Facebook, said "I am heartbroken for our city and for our people. Lewiston is known for our strength and our grit and we will need both in the days to come."

A timeline of events from Maine State Police

At 6:56 p.m., Wednesday, Oct. 25, Auburn Communications Center was notified that a man walked into the Sparetime Recreation on Mollison Street in Lewiston and began shooting. This was confirmed by multiple 911 calls that followed.

At 7:08 p.m., the Auburn Communications Center received multiple calls that a man had come into Schemengees Bar and Grille Restaurant on Lincoln Street and began shooting.

Multiple law enforcement agencies and emergency medical personnel were dispatched to the scenes.

At 8:06 pm, police released a photo of the shooter to the media.

At 9:26 p.m., the Lewiston Police Department received a call identifying the man in the distributed photos as Robert Card, age 40, of Bowdoin, Maine.

At 9:56 p.m., the Lisbon Police Department notified Lewiston Police that they had located a white Subaru at the Pejepscot Boat Launch in Lisbon. The vehicle was identified as belonging to Robert Card.

Police have confirmed that there were seven people killed at Sparetime Recreation, and eight people killed at Schemengees Bar and Grille. Three addition people died after being transported to Central Maine Medical Hospital in Lewiston for treatment. An additional 13 people were injured in the shootings.

Names of the victims are not available at this time as police continue to identify victims and contact family members.

Currently there are over 350 law enforcement personnel involved in the search for Robert Card, comprised of officers from all over the state, and national agencies as well.

If anyone has any information on Robert Card or about the shootings, call 207-213-9526 or 207-509-9002.

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