A soldier who served with Maine mass shooter Robert R. Card II in the Army Reserve begged his superiors to stop Card before he was going to “snap and commit a mass shooting,” text messages released by police show.
A string of text messages released by the Sagadahoc County Sheriff’s Office to the Bangor Daily News on Wednesday show a staff sergeant identified only as “Hodgson” warning Kelvin Mote, an Ellsworth Police officer and fellow reservist, that Card was unraveling mentally and was dangerous.
“Change the passcode to the unit gate and be armed if sfc Card does arrive. Please. I believe he’s messed up in the head,” Hodgson said in texts to Mote.
A part of a text message shows how a soldier told his supervisor about the threat posed by Robert R. Card II. Courtesy of Source: Provided by Sagadahoc County Sheriff’s Office
The texts are part of what was given to the sheriff’s office in September when reservists asked it to conduct a welfare check on Card. It’s the latest indication that people close to Card tried to intervene and sought mental health services for Card and to remove his access to weapons in the months leading up to the the worst mass shooting in Maine’s modern history.
In the texts, which Hodgson sent to Mote at 2:04 a.m. on an unspecified date, Hodgson said he was afraid Card was going to “f—k up his life” because of the things Card was hearing in his head. Hodgson said he loves Card “to death” but didn’t know how to help him, especially since Card refused to seek help, according to the text messages.
Card was found dead Friday, two days after he shot and killed 18 people and injured 13 more at Just-In-Time Recreation bowling alley and Schemengees Bar and Grille on Oct. 25.
The United States Army prohibited Card from handling weapons and live ammunition on Aug. 3, shortly after he had a two-week stay at Four Winds Hospital, a New York mental health treatment facility.
Card’s family raised concerns with police about his mental health May 3. Family members told the Sagadahoc County Sheriff’s Office that Card had become increasingly paranoid since February when he started wearing hearing aids.
Hodgson told Mote in the text message that Card may still have been in possession of “all of his weapons.”
Read the full text messages below. Note: Contains explicit language.
In May, Mote told the Sagadahoc County Sheriff’s Office there was a plan to sit down with Card and get him to open up about what was going on, according to the police report.
On Sept. 15, Sagadahoc sheriff’s deputy Adam Skolfield went to Card’s home for a welfare check, but no one responded, per the September report.
Skolfield returned Sept. 16 with a second deputy. Card could be heard moving around his trailer but did not open the door.
Police were in a “disadvantageous position” and decided to back away after Card refused to answer the door, the report said. The Army Reserve warned responding police that they should use “utmost caution” with Card.
BDN writer Marie Weidmayer contributed to this report.
