Arthur Barnard says he left Schemengees Bar and Grille in Lewiston, Maine, on Wednesday night just 10 minutes before a gunman arrived and started massacring patrons. His son, Arthur Strout, with whom Barnard had been playing pool at the bar, chose not to go with his father.
“He was supposed to leave with me and he decided he wanted to stay for a couple more games,” Barnard told WCVB. Strout, a 42-year-old father of five, was killed in the attack. “People loved him,” Barnard said of Strout. “They just loved him.”
According to authorities, seven men were killed inside the bar and another man was shot dead outside during Wednesday’s spree attack. Three others later died in area hospitals. Earlier in the evening, one woman and six males, including a 14-year-old high school freshman and his dad, were killed at a bowling alley, Just-In-Time Recreation, a few miles away. Police have named Robert Card, an Army reservist, as a suspect in the rampage. The massive police manhunt for Card was still underway Friday morning.
ADVERTISEMENT
“I’m there with my son, playing a couple of games of pool, just laughing,” Barnard added. “A little nachos, couple of soft drinks. And in that 10 minutes, he’s just gone.”
Among the other people killed at Schemengees was manager Joseph Walker. His father, Leroy Walker, says he was told by police that his son had attempted to confront the gunman with a knife “to stop him from shooting anybody else.” Joseph, who also served as a city council member in Auburn, Maine, was fatally shot twice in the stomach, Leroy said.
A cornhole tournament for deaf athletes was taking place at the bar when the shooting started. Joshua Seal, a father of four and interpreter participating in the tournament, was among those killed, his wife confirmed. “For those of you who knew him, first and foremost, he was the world’s BEST father to our four pups,” Elizabeth Seal wrote in a tribute.
Other victims at the bar have been identified as Steve Vozzella, Bryan McFarlane, and Bill Brackett.
Authorities surrounded a property linked to Card in Bowdoin, Maine, on Thursday night, but left the area without locating him. Card remains at large and is considered “armed and dangerous.” An arrest warrant has been issued for multiple counts of murder.
