‘I was in shock. I was literally in shock;’ Metro man reacts to mass shootings in his hometown

HENRY COUNTY, Ga. — What’s going on in Maine is being felt by many across the country, including one metro Atlanta man who spent most of his life outside Lewiston.

Robert Torrey is from the Thompson/Brunswick area in Maine. It’s right next door to Lisbon Falls and Lewiston. It’s also close to where the mass shooting happened in Maine.

On Wednesday, law enforcement officials in Maine said 40-year-old Robert Card killed 18 people and injured 13 in two mass shootings at Schemengees Bar & Grille and Just-In-Time Recreation.

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“Oh, within a few miles. Within a few miles. It’s literally less than five or six miles,” Torrey told Channel 2′s Larry Spruill. “I was in shock. I was literally in shock. I was getting information from Facebook. My wife was telling me at the same time to put it on the news.”

Torrey said he started calling and texting his friends, who still lived in the area, as police began searching for Card.

“Some [of my friends] were in close proximity to the events that happened,” Torrey said. “My sister’s ex-boyfriend lives near the boat ramp, where they found his vehicle. Another couple of friends from high school live near where they found his body.”

While Torrey didn’t know Card personally, he said one of his friends did.

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“He had played horseshoes with him in a summer league, I think, for the last couple of years,” he said. “He knew his name that night before the authorities did. He recognized the shirt he was wearing.”

Maine Department of Public Safety Commissioner Mike Sauschuck said Card’s body was found at 7:45 p.m. Friday. He confirmed that Card was found with an apparent self-inflicted gunshot wound and was located by the Androscoggin River.

“There’s an overwhelming sense of relief,” Torrey said. “They’re ready to move on and heal and get on with some closure.”

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It’s closure, Torrey told Spruill, that will eventually come. But as of right now, the healing process must start.

“Stay strong. Stay strong. You’re loved all over the world,” he said. “If there’s anything you need, I don’t necessarily mean from me, but if there’s anything you need, you can ask.”

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