Hundreds of police officers and FBI agents are searching for Robert Card, a US Army reservist suspected of murdering 18 people and injuring 13 others in a mass shooting in Lewiston, Maine. The suspect is described as armed and dangerous, and schools and businesses have closed as people take shelter up to 50 miles from the scenes of Wednesday's attacks.
On Thursday night, police raided a property in neighbouring Bowdoin, around a 20-minute drive from Lewiston. Over a megaphone, officers were heard shouting for Mr Card to surrender and come out of a house with his hands up. An official said police were "simply doing their due diligence by tracking down every lead" in the effort to locate and apprehend him.
The shooting began at a bowling alley just before 19:00 local time (23:00 GMT) on Wednesday, where one woman and six men were killed. Within about ten minutes, gunfire was reported at Schemengees Bar & Grille, where eight more men were fatally shot. Sixteen injured people were initially taken to hospital, three of whom later died. The Gun Violence Archive said it was the worst mass shooting in the US this year, and it is considered the worst recorded in Maine.
The search has prompted a public call from Lewiston's congressman, Jared Golden, for a ban on assault weapons. The moderate Democrat, who previously voted against such a ban, said: "The time has come for me to take responsibility for this failure... I now call on the United States Congress to ban assault rifles like the one used by the sick perpetrator of this mass killing."
Maine State Police said the suspect had recently reported mental health issues, including hearing voices and threats to shoot up a military installation. He was reportedly admitted to a mental health treatment facility in the summer. His sister-in-law told NBC News that family members had alerted police and the Army to his "acute" mental health crisis. Maine's Governor Janet Mills called it a "dark day" for the state and pledged "to seek full justice for the victims and their families."
