On the night of two deadly mass shootings in Lewiston, the Cumberland County Sheriff’s Office added patrols around the shooter’s ex-girlfriend’s home in Harpswell to protect her and watch for the suspect, according to police.

Patrol Capt. Kerry Joyce, of the Sheriff’s Office, said Monday, Nov. 6, that Maine State Police contacted the Sheriff’s Office on the night of the Oct. 25 shooting to inform them that an ex-girlfriend of Robert Card II could be in danger.

“We were advised the State Police had gone to the ex-girlfriend’s residence in Harpswell,” Joyce said. “We deployed some extra cars to that area to sit and conduct patrol activities … as we did not know where Card was.”

The fact that Card had an ex-girlfriend in Harpswell who at one point was believed to be in danger was first reported by the Portland Press Herald on Sunday, Nov. 5. Neither the news media nor police have disclosed the woman’s identity.

“Sometime on the night of the shooting, Card’s brother called Sgt. Ed Yurek at the Brunswick Police Department,” the Press Herald reported. “The two served in the military together, according to the police affidavit. (Brother) Ryan Card said he feared Robert might go to Harpswell to target either his ex-girlfriend or ex-wife. It wasn’t clear if that call was before the shootings or not. Yurek declined to comment when contacted by a reporter.”

Police said Card, 40, opened fire at a bowling alley and later a bar/restaurant, both in Lewiston, killing 18 people and wounding 13 others. The shootings occurred at Just-In-Time Recreation, 24 Mollison Way, and Schemengees Bar & Grille, 551 Lincoln St., about 4 miles away.

Taken together as a single incident, it was the deadliest U.S. mass shooting so far in 2023 and the worst in Maine’s history, according to the Press Herald.

Police launched a manhunt for Card, a U.S. Army reservist from Bowdoin who police identified via security camera footage. More than 350 state and federal law enforcement officials participated in the manhunt for Card.

Card was found dead two days later at a recycling center near the Androscoggin River in Lisbon, where he used to work. Autopsy results suggest Card was alive up until eight to 12 hours before police found his body on the evening of Oct. 27, The Associated Press reported. Police have said Card shot himself.

Have a comment or news tip? Email J. Craig Anderson at craig@harpswellanchor.org.