18 people were shot dead and 13 more were injured in the mass shootings in Lewiston.
A month earlier, law enforcement in the state of Maine had been alerted to Robert Card – the shooter who was found dead Friday night.
The news agency AP reports that several “red flags” surround the 40-year-old reservist.
During Friday evening local time, Robert Card was found dead in a tractor trailer just outside Lewiston in Maine in the USA. At the time, the 40-year-old reservist had been hunted by police for two days after he killed 18 people and injured 13 more in the worst mass shooting in the state’s history.
Now the news agency reports AP that Maine police were alerted about Robert Card a month before the mass shootings took place. Among other things, the reservist is said to have threatened to commit an act on a military base. Several threats are said to have been directed at former colleagues and other soldiers.
Wasn’t on the FBI’s radar
In mid-September, an alert was sent out to all law enforcement agencies in the state, according to the news agency. Several police patrols are said to have tried to get in touch with Robert Card, including at the military base and at his home.
– We used extra patrols and we did that for about two weeks. The guy never showed up, says Police Chief Jack Clements.
The sheriff of Sagadahoc, the area where Robert Card lived, Joel Merry said in an interview that all law enforcement agencies were alerted after failing to locate the 40-year-old. He states that he does not know if there was any follow-up.
FBI: Wasn’t on our radar
The news agency writes that several red flags surrounding the shooter were missed and that the case has raised questions about what the police, military and relatives could have done to prevent the massacre.
The American police agency FBI states that Robert Card has not been on their radar despite the previous threats.
Jack Clements defends his department and states that the police receive many alerts about people and that they actually searched for Robert Card for two weeks.