LEWISTON: A US Army reservist accused of spraying a bowling alley and bar with gunfire in Lewiston, Maine, killing 18 people, was found dead after a 48-hour manhunt, restoring calm to communities unnerved by the bloodshed but leaving many questions unanswered.

The body of Robert R. Card, 40, was discovered on Friday night in a wooded area within the neighboring town of Lisbon Falls, near where police found his abandoned getaway vehicle shortly after the shooting spree on Wednesday night, police said.

Card appeared to have died from a self-inflicted gunshot wound, Maine Public Safety Commissio­ner Mike Sauschuck told reporters at a late-night briefing. He did not say how long the suspect was thought to have been dead or what led authorities to locate his body.

Sauschuck said police would have more to say at a news conference set for 10am on Saturday.

A total of 18 people perished and 13 others were wounded in Wednesday 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 made no mention of a possible motive for the gun violence, nor have they revealed the contents of a note by the gunman that police said they found after the rampage.

The shootings and prolonged manhunt terrorised the normally bustling but serene community of Lewiston, a former textile hub and the second-most populous city in Maine. It lies on the banks of the Androscoggin River, about 35 miles north of the state’s largest city, Portland.

Many business owners in Lewiston and adjacent communities closed shop in the immediate aftermath of the shooting, while authorities shuttered schools and issued directives urging some 40,000 area residents to remain indoors and off the streets as a precaution.

Published in Dawn, October 29th, 2023