(Ken Silva, Headline USA) At least 16 people were killed Wednesday evening in a Lewiston, Maine mass shooting that—like so many other similar incidents—is already sparking conspiracies due to reports of the suspect being an Army reservist who was “hearing voices” in his head, possible multiple shooters and other bizarre facts.
Moreover, given that the shooter reportedly threatened to shoot up a National Guard base earlier this year, he was almost certainly on the FBI’s radar. That would make this incident at least the 23rd time that the FBI has monitored, but failed to stop, mass shooters before they go on their sprees.
Oh, an Army veteran that “recently reported mental health issues to include hearing voices” https://t.co/DuFqL5i5kP pic.twitter.com/kdbyu3IkcJ
— 12 Ball (@BoltzmannBooty) October 26, 2023
According to early reports, a man shot and killed at least 16 people at a restaurant and a bowling alley in Maine and then fled into the night. As of the publication of this article, a massive search by hundreds of officers was underway, while frightened residents stayed locked in their homes Thursday under a shelter-in-place advisory.
A police bulletin identified Robert Card, 40, as a person of interest in the attack in Lewiston that sent panicked bowlers scrambling behind pins, into corners and a back room when shots rang out around 7 p.m. Wednesday. Card was described as a firearms instructor believed to be in the U.S. Army Reserve and assigned to a training facility in Saco, Maine.
The document, circulated to law enforcement officials, said Card had been committed to a mental health facility for two weeks in the summer of 2023. It did not provide details about his treatment or condition but said Card had reported “hearing voices and threats to shoot up” the military base.
Card joins a slew of other mass shooters who “heard voices” in their head—including Las Vegas shooter Stephen Paddock, Parkland shooter Nikolas Cruz and Navy Yard shooter Aaron Alexis.
You know who also heard voices in his head? https://t.co/wsjOL04GRv pic.twitter.com/4pjRaIeSLW
— Not That Guy (@JolyonKlebold) October 26, 2023
Card’s mental illness is far from the only bizarre factoid in this latest mass shooting.
Lewiston Police had also said in an earlier Facebook post that they were dealing with an active shooter incident at Schemengees Bar and Grille and at Sparetime Recreation, a bowling alley about 4 miles away.
An unconfirmed video of a man being arrested in Lewiston has been circulating on Twitter—leading to questions about whether there were multiple shooters.
This is NOT the video of the suspected shooter in Lewiston, Maine.
The shooter is still at large. pic.twitter.com/Z5ZhcQCkj6
— Ryan Foster (@RyanFosterHQ) October 26, 2023
Despite these apparent anomalies, partisan hacks were quick to locate Card’s social media and peg him as a right-winger.
His Twitter account’s “likes” included posts about trans mass shooters, COVID-19 being created in a lab and the government banning guns.
But even Card’s Twitter account raises questions about its authenticity. As noted by right-wing personality Second City Bureaucrat, he only started his account last November.
He was a 2022er pic.twitter.com/9r8N89LcMB
— Second City Bureaucrat (@CityBureaucrat) October 26, 2023
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Ken Silva is a staff writer at Headline USA. Follow him at twitter.com/jd_cashless.
