Two people were killed and three others were injured when a gunman opened fire during a high school hockey game in Pawtucket, Rhode Island, on Monday, officials said.
Officers were called to Dennis M. Lynch Arena for reports of an active shooter around 2:30 p.m., Police Chief Tina Goncalves said.
Officers found one person dead in the arena, Goncalves said, and another died at a hospital. The two appear to be adults, she said.
The suspected shooter was found dead of an apparent self-inflicted gunshot wound, police said.
Goncalves did not identify the victims Monday, and a motive is under investigation.
“This was a targeted event. It looked like a family dispute and there was one individual that was a family friend,” Goncalves said.
Police identified the suspect as Robert Dorgan, who Goncalves said also went by the first name Roberta and by the last name Esposito. Pawtucket Mayor Donald Grebien’s office said the suspect was 56 years old.
“It appears that a lone individual, the suspect, entered the arena to watch the hockey game of a family member. And unfortunately, during that time, a shooting occurred,” Goncalves said at a news conference later Monday night.
The three other people who were taken to the hospital were in critical condition from gunshot wounds, Goncalves said.
“We are all deeply and profoundly affected by the recent events that took place at the Dennis M. Lynch Arena,” Dorgan’s family said in a statement released Tuesday through a family attorney and spokesperson. “We are reminded that behind every headline is a family experiencing profound pain and loss. We care greatly for all families impacted by this recent tragedy and our thoughts are with them.”
The family said that it was cooperating with authorities but that their focus was “on all of those who have been injured and whose lives have been forever changed.”
The shooting took place on “senior night” for Blackstone Valley Schools, and hockey teams from Coventry-Johnston co-op and St. Raphael-Providence Country Day-North Providence-North Smithfield co-op were playing, NBC affiliate WJAR of Providence reported.
A bystander who tried to subdue the gunman most likely stopped the violence from being worse, Goncalves said at a news conference Monday night.
“A good Samaritan stepped in and interjected in this scene, and that’s probably what led to a swift end of this tragic event,” she said, saying the bystander tried to “subdue” the shooter.
Grebien, the mayor, called it a “terrible tragedy.” He said the three wounded people were “fighting for their lives.”
“Family and friends were gathered today at a hockey game at Lynch Arena to celebrate senior night, bringing together communities across the state,” Grebien said. “Instead, an act of senseless violence has taken the lives of two innocent victims, with the suspect taking his own life.”
Because the game was being livestreamed online, the incident was captured on video. A spokesperson from the platform that streamed the game said access to the video has been locked.
In the video, which NBC News has verified, the shooting is not visible in the wide angle of the arena. Students can be seen on the ice when a series of roughly a dozen shots are heard. The first few shots are separated by a few seconds, then the rest occur in rapid succession.
The video shows people in the stands running for the exits when the first shots are heard, and players on the bench duck down. The students on the ice do not initially seem to know what is happening but rush to exit the rink when the gunfire continues.
Coventry Public Schools of Rhode Island Superintendent Don Cowart said in a statement that all the members of the hockey team from Coventry were safe and accounted for.
Providence Country Day School and St. Raphael Academy said all of its students were safe.
Rhode Island Gov. Dan Mckee, who is a former youth basketball coach, said in a statement that he was praying for the state’s communities.
“Our state is grieving again,” Mckee wrote.
Monday’s shooting comes a little more than two months after a gunman opened fire at Brown University in Providence on Dec. 13, killing two students. The 48-year-old shooter fled and killed a Massachusetts Institute of Technology professor before he killed himself, officials said.
Mckee thanked all the first responders who went to the scene to help after the hockey game shooting, as well as hospital staff members and others.
“As Governor, a parent, and a former coach, my heart breaks for the victims, families, students and everyone impacted by the devastating shooting at Lynch Arena in Pawtucket,” McKee wrote Monday.
Firearms were retrieved at the scene, said Goncalves, who did not say how many or what type.
Goncalves said Pawtucket police has not had previous interactions with the suspect.
FBI Director Kash Patel said the FBI’s Boston field office was responding, and he pledged the agency’s support.
“In the meantime please pray for the victims and their families,” Patel wrote on X.
The Providence Bruins, an American Hockey League team affiliated with the Boston Bruins, as well as the Bruins, the New England Patriots and the Boston Red Sox, were among the sports teams that expressed their sadness and condolences.
If you or someone you know is in crisis, call or text 988 or go to 988lifeline.org to reach the Suicide & Crisis Lifeline. You can also call the network, previously known as the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline, at 800-273-8255 or visit SpeakingOfSuicide.com/resources.
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33 Comments
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I like the balance sheet here—less leverage than peers.
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Uranium names keep pushing higher—supply still tight into 2026.
Good point. Watching costs and grades closely.
I like the balance sheet here—less leverage than peers.
Good point. Watching costs and grades closely.
Silver leverage is strong here; beta cuts both ways though.
Good point. Watching costs and grades closely.
Exploration results look promising, but permitting will be the key risk.
Exploration results look promising, but permitting will be the key risk.
Good point. Watching costs and grades closely.
Nice to see insider buying—usually a good signal in this space.
Good point. Watching costs and grades closely.
Interesting update on 2 killed and 3 injured in shooting at a Rhode Island high school hockey game. Curious how the grades will trend next quarter.
The cost guidance is better than expected. If they deliver, the stock could rerate.