The sequence, tragically familiar in the United States, was the usual one. First it was learned that there was an armed man in Lewiston, the second largest city in the small northeastern state of Maine. He later performed at “several locations,” which in the end turned out to be two: a bowling alley and a restaurant. The police then reported “several victims” without providing further information and that the suspect was on the run and “active”. The information was accompanied by a warning to residents to stay at home until further notice. The photo of the murderer, a white man with a frightened expression, in a hunting position, thin, tall, with a beard and an assault rifle with a telescopic sight at the ready, did not bode well within a few minutes. The city hospital was put on alert. And in the end, after 9 p.m., the fatal confirmation came from CNN: According to police reports, the suspect killed 16 people on Wednesday night and left dozens injured, “between 50 and 60.”
This is the 565th mass shooting so far this year, according to the Gun Violence Archive, an organization that monitors gun violence in the United States. To add to the macabre list, an incident of this nature must result in four people being injured or killed by bullets, not counting the attacker. The victims also cannot be members of the same family. The count shows the result of almost two mass shootings per day in 2023. This week alone, three were recorded before the one in Lewiston (population approximately 35,000), with a total of three fatalities in events in Illinois, Colorado and North Carolina. If preliminary figures for the latest incident are confirmed by this Wednesday, the deadliest incident in May occurred in Monterey Park, California (16 murdered) and Allen, Texas, with eight.
[Noticia de última hora. Habrá actualización en breve]
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