Police find the deceased suspect in the Maine mass shooting

 Police find the deceased suspect in the Maine mass shooting

Following a three-day search, authorities say the guy who was suspected of murdering eighteen people in a shooting in Maine has been discovered dead.

Robert Card, forty, was discovered dead from what seemed to be a self-inflicted gunshot wound, according to Michael Sauschuck, Commissioner of Public Safety for Maine.

Hours after police dropped a stay-at-home directive for the usually peaceful neighborhood, word of the incident breaks.

Four deaf people, ages 14 to 76, a gifted young bowler, and a grandpa are among the deceased.

The Androscoggin County Sheriff's Office posted on Facebook, stating, "The suspect in Wednesday night's shootings has been apprehended and is deceased."

Maine Governor Janet Mills said at a press conference held at Lewiston City Hall that the corpse had been discovered close to the scene of the shooting.

"I'm breathing a sigh of relaxation tonight knowing that Robert Card will not be an imminent threat to anyone," she said.

According to Governor Mills, the community will embark on "the long and difficult road to healing" after the discovery of the suspect's corpse.

Not only was Lewiston Police Chief David St Pierre "elated" by the news, but he also said that "our work is not done here".

In addition to continuing to work and endure, we will weep for the families who have lost loved ones and grow as a result," he said.

The corpse was discovered Friday at 19:45 local time (23:45 GMT), according to Commissioner Sauschuck, next to a river in Lisbon Falls.

He claimed that a lot of the information was being kept under wraps because the police wanted to first talk to the relatives of the victims.

On Saturday, there will be another press conference at 10:00 (14:00 GMT).

Police had earlier on Friday disclosed the identities of all eighteen victims.

The state "can breathe an collective gasp of relief thanks to the brave emergency workers who worked throughout the night to find this killer," according to Senator Susan Collins of Maine.

She also said that she had received a call earlier on Friday from President Joe Biden informing her of the suspect's death.

It had been "a tragic two days - rather than just for Lewiston, Maine, but for our entire country," according to a statement released by Mr. Biden.

"Once again, an American neighborhood and American families have been devastated by gun violence," he remarked.

He urged Congressmen who are Republicans "to fulfill their obligation to keep the American people safe" by supporting stricter gun laws.

"Until that day comes, I will keep going to do everything in my power to put a stop this gun violence epidemic," he said.

Maine assault kills a deaf interpreter for the governor

"Doing everything we can to help law enforcement" was the family's statement made to NBC by the suspect's sister-in-law.

"Our hearts are broken," said Katie Card, the brother of the gunman's spouse.

In the little hamlet of Lewiston, there was an incident on Wednesday night at a pub and a bowling alley.

Two venues, a bowling alley called Just-In-Time Recreation and a restaurant named Schemengees, about four miles (6.5 km) apart, had been the subject of reports of gunfire.

Three were declared dead at nearby hospitals, eight at Schemengees Bar and Grille, and seven at the bowling alley.

A virtual vigil was held on Zoom on Friday night by members of the deaf community in the area who were highly moved by the tragedy, before to the word that Card had been located.

Almost one hundred individuals who are hard of hearing and deaf nationwide participated.

"There are no signs or words to express what we are all going through," said the moderator, Terry Morrell.

He continued, "We lost four dear deaf persons. Two more deaf people were hurt.

"We are all grieving, we have been all in shock, we're angry, we're numb," he said.