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Police affidavit sheds light on why shooting suspect targeted Lewiston businesses

A hazmat team works inside Schemengees Bar & Grille, Sunday, Oct. 29, 2023, in Lewiston, Maine. The community is working to heal following shooting deaths of 18 people at the bar and a bowling alley in Lewiston on Wednesday.
Matt York
/
AP
A hazmat team works inside Schemengees Bar & Grille, Sunday, Oct. 29, 2023, in Lewiston, Maine. The community is working to heal following shooting deaths of 18 people at the bar and a bowling alley in Lewiston on Wednesday.

Court documents released late Tuesday afternoon by the Maine Attorney General's office offer new details on why the suspect in last week's shootings may have targeted a bar and bowling alley in Lewiston

An affidavit filed by the Maine State Police says that suspect Robert Card believed there was a conspiracy against him and that his family and area businesses were accusing him of being a pedophile. He believed that four area businesses were spreading the accusation online, including Sparetime Recreation and Schemengee's Bar and Grille in Lewiston where he shot and killed 18 people and injured 13. He also believed Gowell's Market in Litchfield and Mixer's Nightclub in Sabattus were complicit.

The affidavit also says Card had been delusional since February after a bad break up. He reportedly had significant weight loss, was hospitalized for mental health issues, and had stopped taking his medication.

According to Card's brother, whose name was redacted in the affidavit, Card had met his former partner at a cornhole competition at Schemengee's.