A high school hockey game in Pawtucket, Rhode Island, USA, became the centre of an unprecedented and distressing tragedy on Monday afternoon (US time). The worst possible thing imagined happened at the Dennis M. Lynch Arena, a local skating rink, when two adults victims were killed in a shooting, leaving three others in critical condition.
Several schools were playing at the rink for senior night at the time of incident.
The police chief told reporters Monday night that a ‘Good Samaritan’ “interjected in this scene, and that’s probably what led to a swift end of this tragic event.”
Who is the Pawtucket shooting suspect? All we know
Pawtucket Police Chief Tina Goncalves eventually identified the shooter as 56-year-old Robert Dorgan, who also went by the name Roberta Esposito, at a press conference. Born in 1969, the alleged lone gunman appears to have died of a self-inflicted gunshot wound.
Police have since also established that the shooting was “targeted,” as it seems to have been triggered by a family dispute. Goncalves further revealed at the briefing that authorities retrieved firearms from the scene.
She also revealed that the hockey game shooter, who has now died, had gone to the local skating rink to watch the game as a family member is said to have been playing.
After the harrowing incident in Pawtucket, an unidentified woman told US outlet NewsCenter 5 that her father was the shooter.
“He shot my family, and he’s dead now,” she told reporters while leaving the police department. “He has mental health issues.” When pushed to answer why he would’ve done it, the woman added, “He’s sick. He’s very sick.”
More about Rhode Island shooting suspect Robert Dorgan’s family
As per court records cited by CBS Rhode Island affiliate WPRI-TV, the shooter had a history of family-related disputes and legal issues stemming from their gender identity.
The local US report further suggested that Dorgan went to the North Providence Police Department in early 2020, and told officials that he had recently undergone gender-reassignment surgery.
He is also believed to have reported that his father-in-law wanted him to leave their North Providence home (where he had lived for seven years) because of it, and had used a derogatory term for transgender people to push Robert out,
Dorgan is said to have told police that his father-in-law threatened to “have him murdered by an Asian street gang if he did not move out of the residence,” as per the court docs cited by the WPRI report. The father-in-law was ultimately charged with intimidation of witnesses and victims of crimes and obstruction of the judicial system, but prosecutors later dismissed the charges.
Dorgan’s then-wife, Rhonda Dorgan, also filed for divorce around the same time, as per WPRI. She initially wrote “gender reassignment surgery, narcissistic + personality disorder traits” under reasons for the separation. Eventually, those grounds were crossed out, as she wrote “irreconcilable differences which have caused the immediate breakdown of the marriage.”
As per court records cited therein, the divorce was finalised in June 2021.
In 2020, Dorgan also accused his mother of assaulting him and acting in a “violent, threatening or tumultuous manner,” as stated in police records, WPRI reported. Robert’s mother was then charged with simple assault and battery and disorderly conduct. The case also emerged as yet another trigger in the discordant ties between Dorgan and his father-in-law.
Even the case against the mother was dismissed later one, as per court records cited in the report.
Disclaimer (India): If you or someone you know is in distress or struggling with mental health, please seek help immediately.
– Government Tele-MANAS Helpline: Call 14416 or 1-800-891-4416 (Toll-free, 24×7, available in 20+ languages).
– KIRAN (Govt. Helpline): 1800-599-0019
– Vandrevala Foundation: +91-9999666555 (WhatsApp/Call)
– Fortis National Helpline: +91-8376804102
Meanwhile, those in the US may call or text on the suicide and crisis lifeline operating 24/7 is 988.