The body of the 40-year-old man who allegedly shot 18 people in the US state of Maine was discovered in the parking lot of a recycling plant. According to police, his mental state played a role in the crime, but he had probably not previously undergone psychiatric treatment.
After the body of the alleged Maine shooter was found, police continue to investigate the motive for the horrific crime. The 40-year-old man’s mental state clearly played a role, US state public safety officer Mike Sauschuck said at a press conference on Saturday. However, more research is needed. Police only found the man’s body on Friday – 48 hours after the devastating massacre that left 18 people dead in the small town of Lewiston. According to police, he committed suicide after the crime.
The man opened fire at a leisure center and a steakhouse on Wednesday night. He then escaped and his trail was lost in the wooded environment. After a relatively short time, the police identified reserve soldier Robert C., aged 40, as the suspect in the crime. According to their own statements, the police found his body on Friday night (local time) – in a caravan that was parked in an alternative parking lot at a recycling plant. The man reportedly worked there at undisclosed hours.
I found a kind of farewell note
Sauschuck also said that a kind of farewell note was found that showed that the alleged shooter did not expect to be captured alive. The message, which he left on a piece of paper, was addressed to a relative and contained access data for his cell phone and accounts. The official also said that, based on current knowledge, there is nothing to indicate that the man was forcibly admitted for psychiatric treatment. As long as that’s not the case, you can legally buy guns in Maine, he explained.
Police searched for the suspect in large numbers for two days. Investigators also have not ruled out a boat escape. They received hundreds of tips from residents related to the search. The search was also very difficult because the sparsely populated area has many forests and swamps. Lewiston itself has almost 40,000 residents and is located about 200 kilometers north of Boston on the east coast of the USA. “I’m breathing a sigh of relief tonight,” Maine Gov. Janet Mills said Friday night.
After the crime, a state of emergency prevailed in the rural area of the north of the state – public life practically came to a standstill. Authorities imposed a kind of curfew and ordered tens of thousands of people in several communities not to leave their homes. Schools and stores remained closed for fear of the attacker’s disappearance. The order was only lifted on Friday night (local time).
Biden: Tragic days “for our entire country”
“Tonight we are grateful that Lewiston and the surrounding communities are safe after people spent agonizing days in their homes,” said US President Joe Biden after the body was found. Several “courageous police officers” worked day and night to find the suspect. “It was a tragic two days – not just for Lewiston, Maine, but for our entire country.”
Authorities announced the names of the 18 people who died on Friday. The youngest was just 14, the oldest 76. Furthermore, in recent days, more and more horrific details about the crime have become known, as eyewitnesses describe their experiences. “I crawled to the corner, but at that moment I already had a bullet wound in my arm,” said Jennifer Zanca, who was at the steakhouse with friends at the time of the crime. She ended up hiding behind a trash can. “I don’t know what to do next because this continues to happen and there have to be solutions,” she said, referring to such acts.
Discussions about tightening gun laws
The Maine massacre is the deadliest in the United States since the massacre at an elementary school in the state of Texas in May 2022. At that time, a gunman in Uvalde killed 19 children and two teachers. In the USA, these bloody acts are, unfortunately, part of everyday life. Firearms are easily available there and are widely advertised.
This has repeatedly led to discussions about tightening gun laws, but so far without any real results. As a rule, pushes for stricter gun laws fail because of Republicans and the powerful gun lobby. President Biden has also repeatedly called for stricter regulations. (APA/dpa)