SUSPECT IN MASS SHOOTING IN MAINE FOUND DEAD

THE suspect in the killing of 18 people in the US state of Maine was found dead by the police Friday.

Robert Card, 40, was discovered lifeless near a recycling facility near the city of Lewiston, where the shootings occurred, with an apparent self-inflicted gunshot wound to his head.

“Our community can now breathe a sigh of relief,” Police Chief David St. Pierre said at a news conference.

“I was very elated tonight when I got the call… advising me of the revelation of what took place and that Mr. Card is deceased and no longer a threat to our community or any other community,” the police chief said.

The shooting rampage took place late Wednesday at a local bowling alley and later at an area bar.

Police said Card opened fire with a high-powered sniper rifle, killing 18 and wounding 13 others, before fleeing.

Hundreds of local, state, and federal law enforcement officials began an intensive manhunt that left the small community of 37,000 in fear and under a shelter-in-place order for almost 48 hours.

It was the 567th mass shooting in the US in 2023 and the deadliest this year, according to the Gun Violence Archive, an online registry of violent gun occurrences. (Anadolu)