Authorities provide an update on the manhunt for Maine mass shooting suspect Robert Card

A massive manhunt remains underway for Robert Card, a 40-year-old Army Reservist, who authorities have identified as the sole suspect in Wednesday night’s mass shooting in Lewiston, Maine that left 18 dead.

Law enforcement officers are continuing to search in Lewiston, Lisbon, Monmouth and other surrounding areas.

Where is Robert Card?

Law enforcement officials have executed search warrants on local properties belonging to Card, even calling out on a megaphone, requesting he peacefully turn himself over. After two hours, the officers left. 

Public records show Card and family members own several properties in the city. 

Maine Public Safety Commissioner Mike Sauschuck said at a press conference on Friday that authorities recovered a note that the shooting suspect wrote and left behind at one of his residences. He did not share specifics so as not to reveal a motive.

Investigators and those assisting in the search effort have run into the natural difficulties of Maine’s landscape, much of which is heavy forests.

Deploying dive teams

Officials are also conducting search efforts over local waterways as one of Card’s boats is unaccounted for. Authorities are searching the Androscoggin River, the Kennebec River and elsewhere. 

Sauschuck said at Friday's press conference that several agencies would be deploying dive teams into the rivers.

He said the divers will be "checking for potential bodies" and other evidence near a boat launch site.

"I'm not saying that the suspect is in the water," he continued. "What I'm telling you is you're going to see a lot of activity here. And I'm going to tell you that in advance. We've got nothing to hide in that regard at all."

Getting assistance from the public

He also said authorities are working over 530 tips and leads from the public and will resume overnight and each and every day until Card is found.

“We're also continuing to do searches at the two primary venues here, the one being Schemengees Bar and Grill, and the second being the Sparetime bowling alley,” Sauschuck said.”

“There are many, many moving parts and coordination of efforts involved between multiple agencies, we will attempt to provide as much information as possible as this investigation proceeds forward,” Lewiston Police chief David St. Pierre added at the press conference.

Safety remains 'paramount'

“Law enforcement continues to work diligently on this rapidly evolving investigation,” he added. “The safety of our community remains paramount. I want to assure all that a tremendous amount of law enforcement, manpower, time and effort is being utilized around the clock, in every effort to apprehend the suspect as well as to safeguard this community.”

“I extend my deepest appreciation for all of our law enforcement partners who have responded from literally, literally around this nation. Again, I will ask the community to be as patient as possible with this process,” St. Pierre said.

'Still days away'

Sauschuck also said investigators are “still days away” from concluding the investigation and pushed back on criticism that authorities have not yet found Card.

“We're going to be processing every square inch of these facilities, not only do you have the victims in question, but every one of those rounds that got fired and need to be investigated, every one of those cartridges and lays on the ground needs to be collected. The vehicles that are in those parking lot, everything that we do around us, we need to be careful. We need to be professional, and that's what we're committed to do,” the public safety commissioner said. “So I would expect that we're still days away from completing those particular investigations.”

The manhunt continues

Local law enforcement have partnered with state officials and federal agencies and bureaus for an expansive search over land and sea. These include the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF), the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), and the U.S. Coast Guard. 

The Border Patrol Tactical Unit (BORTAC), which has global capabilities and specializes in intelligence, reconnaissance and surveillance, has also joined the search.

BORTAC has been successful in resolving several high profile cases recently, including: Helping track and find escaped Pennsylvania murderer Danelo Cavalcante and Cleveland mass shooter Francisco Oropesa. BORTAC also breached and killed the Uvalde school shooter in May 2022.