LEWISTON, Maine (AP) — Authorities scoured the woods and hundreds of acres of family-owned property, sent dive teams with sonar to the bottom of a river and scrutinized a possible suicide note Friday in the second day of their intensive search for an Army reservist accused of fatally shooting 18 people and wounding 13 at a bowling alley and a bar in Maine.
Authorities lifted their shelter in place order Friday evening, nearly 48 hours after the shootings.
The names and pictures of the 16 males and 2 females who died were released as State Public Safety Commissioner Mike Sauschuck asked for a moment of silence at a news conference. Their ages ranged from 14 to 76.
Law enforcement officials said they have not seen suspect Robert Card since his vehicle was left at a boat ramp Wednesday shortly after the shootings. Sauschuck didn’t say if they have any indication if Card is alive or dead, only that investigators are leaving all their options open.
“We’re going to be all over the place,” Sauschuck said. “That’s not saying that we know that the individual is in this house, you know, in that house or they’re in that swath of land, this acreage.”
Authorities say Card, 40, who has firearms training, opened fire at the bar and a bowling alley Wednesday in Lewiston, Maine’s second-largest city.
Police and other law enforcement officers were spotted in several areas around the region on Friday. Divers searched the water near a boat launch in Lisbon, and a farming business in the same town. At points throughout the day, police vehicles were seen speeding through several towns, lights flashing and sirens blaring.
A gun was found in Card’s car, which was discovered at a boat ramp, and federal agents were testing it to determine if it was used in the shooting, two law enforcement officials told The Associated Press. The officials were not authorized to publicly discuss details of the investigation and spoke to the AP on the condition of anonymity. Authorities have said publicly that the shooter used at least one rifle. They have not released any other details, including how the suspect obtained the firearm.
Authorities found a suicide note at a home associated with Card on Thursday that was addressed to his son, the law enforcement officials said. They said it didn’t provide any specific motive for the shooting. Authorities also recovered Card’s cellphone in the home, making a search more complicated because authorities routinely use phones to track suspects, the officials said.
Federal agents conducted several searches of properties associated with Card on Thursday, collecting a number of items, including electronics, the officials said. Investigators are also analyzing Card’s financial information and reviewing his social media posts, writings and his mental health history, they said.