Maine mass shooter who killed 18 people inside bar told cops he was ‘capable’ of doing ‘something’
Maine gunman Robert Card told police he was “capable” of doing “something” during a welfare check three months before he gunned down 18 people inside a bar and bowling alley in the state’s deadliest mass shooting to date.
The cryptic remarks came as New York State troopers enforced a directive to bring Card to counseling services at a West Point Army facility in July, before he was ultimately transferred to a civilian psychiatric hospital, body cam footage obtained by WMTW shows.
The action was taken after members of his Army Reserve unit told authorities they were concerned over his mental state.
“I hope you understand that they’re concerned enough about your welfare that they called us,” one of the troopers tells Card.
“Oh, because they’re scared — because I’m going to, friggin, do something. Because I am capable,” Card responds. The trooper then asks Card what he means by that and he replies “Nothing.”
The concerns over the 40-year-old Army reservist’s mental health came three months before he fatally shot 18 people in Lewiston, Maine, sparking a massive manhunt that ended in his suicide.
“Our concern is he is going to hurt himself or someone else,” a reservist says, according to the outlet.
The reservists, whose names and faces are redacted, detail their years-long friendship with Card, which had become strained due to his poor mental state.
“He spent a lot of money on guns. He spent $14 grand on a scope,” a reservist told the police.
Card tells officers he’s been hearing people talking about him, spreading rumors that he’s gay and a pedophile. The officers tell him he has been ordered to speak with a counselor at the Army hospital.
One of the troopers later asks Card if he’s going to make it to retiring from the Reserve, to which Card replies, “I’m hoping.”
“Don’t do anything to jeopardize that, alright?” the trooper responds.
Weeks before the horrific Oct. 25, 2023 massacre, Card’s best friend texted their boss expressing fear that Card was “going to snap and do a mass shooting,” though by that point, Card’s mental decline was already well-documented by loved ones and law enforcement.
After gunning down his unsuspecting victims, Card fled in a vehicle that was later found abandoned on a waterfront in a nearby town, sparking an intense two-day manhunt.
His body was found in an overflow parking lot at the Maine Recycling Corporation on Oct. 27.
Card suffered a self-inflicted gunshot wound, which medical examiners ruled was “likely” administered eight to 12 hours before his body was discovered.
His motive for the massacre remains a mystery, though officials are probing his extensive history of mental health issues.
