An armed police officer guards the ambulance entrance to the Central Maine Medical Center in Lewiston, Maine, early on Oct. 26, 2023. A massive manhunt was under way for 40-year-old Robert Card, who officials identified as a person of interest.
Joseph Prezioso / AFP via Getty Images
Updated October 26, 2023 at 12:37 p.m. ET
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Maine Gov. Janet Mills said at a Thursday press conference that 18 people were killed and another 13 injured in the shootings last night in Lewiston, Maine.
She said she and President Biden have ordered all U.S. and Maine flags lowered to half-staff immediately for five days in their honor.
The cities of Lewiston, Lisbon and Bowdoin remain under a shelter-in-place order as law enforcement continue searching for Robert Card, whom authorities described as armed and dangerous. People should not approach him under any circumstances, she added.
While Card had initially been described as a person of interest, officials confirmed he is viewed as a suspect now that there are arrest warrants for him on murder charges.
They say it is too soon to release information about the victims or speculate about Card’s motives, as efforts to find him and notify the families continue.
In the meantime, Mills said Maine’s 1.3 million residents are sharing in the sorrow of people who lost loved ones.
“This is a dark day for Maine,” she said. “I know it’s hard for us to think about healing when our hearts our broken. But I want every person in Maine to know that we will heal together. We are strong, we are resilient, we are a very caring people.”
This photo released by the Lewiston Maine Police Department shows Robert Card, who police have identified as a person of interest in connection to mass shootings in Lewiston, Maine, on Wednesday, Oct. 25, 2023.
Lewiston Maine Police Department via AP
What happened on Wednesday night
Maine State Police Col. William Ross offered an update on the details of last night’s shooting, including a timeline of events and what’s known about the victims.
He told reporters that police first received reports of an active shooter at the Just-in-Time Recreation bowling alley at 6:56 p.m. ET Wednesday.
At 7:08 p.m., police received multiple 911 calls about an active shooter inside the Schemengees Bar & Grille. Multiple law enforcement teams joined the scene at this point.
Ross offered the following breakdown of what’s known about the victims:
- One female and six males were found dead at the bowling alley, all from apparent gunshot wounds.
- Eight males were killed at the bar — seven outside the establishment; one inside.
- Three people died after being transferred to area hospitals for treatment.
- Eight of the 18 victims have been identified and their next of kin have been notified.
Ross said police have issued an arrest warrant for eight counts of murder. He said the counts were likely to increase as more victims are identified.
State and federal partners are aiding the investigation
Jodi Cohen, the FBI special agent in charge of the bureau’s Boston Division — which oversees the state of Maine — said the FBI is working with its law enforcement partners to process evidence from the scenes as well as provide investigative, tactical and victim support.
Cohen promised that the FBI will carry out the case with rigor: “We will work day and night alongside our law enforcement partners to get the answers to the questions this community deserves.”
The FBI is asking the public to stay vigilant and come forward with any information that might be helpful to investigators.
Maine Department of Public Safety Commissioner Mike Sauschuck added that when officials have asked federal partners and neighboring states for any resources, “the answer has been yes. Period.”
There are still many unanswered questions
Sauschuck declined to answer reporters’ questions about Card’s weapon, mental health history or possible motive — each of which investigators hope to follow up on as the investigation proceeds.
He also declined to elaborate on the ages of the victims, saying that information wasn’t immediately available. Responding to a question about whether DNA is being collected for victim identification, Sauschuck said efforts to identify victims and notify their families vary on a case-by-case basis.
He also wouldn’t go into detail on why law enforcement officials are targeting particular search areas on Thursday, saying only that they are searching actively.
“If I knew the answers to those questions this would be a different press conference,” he said.
For more coverage of the mass shooting in Lewiston, Maine, you can follow NPR’s live blog here.
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