A Rhode Island man who says he wrestled a mass shooter’s weapon at an ice skating rink recalls the horrific attack.
Shots rang out at Dennis M. Lynch Arena in Pawtucket, near Providence, Monday afternoon as high school students played a game of hockey on the ice.
Pawtucket Police Chief Tina Goncalves told reporters Tuesday that 56-year-old Robert Dorgan fatally shot their ex-wife, Rhonda Dorgan, and adult son, Aidan Dorgan, while watching their son play hockey. Rhonda’s parents, Linda and Gerald Dorgan, and family friend Thomas Geruso were also seriously injured, according to Goncalves.
Goncalves said several bystanders intervened to stop the suspected gunman, who pulled a second gun and died of a “self-inflicted” gunshot wound. The suspected shooter also went by the names Roberta Dorgan and Roberta Esposito, and they appeared to be “wearing feminine clothing,” Goncalves said.
Michael Black of Pawtucket says he was one of the bystanders who intervened. He remembered watching the game between two local co-op teams when he heard the gunfire.
“Next thing you know, I heard two loud pops, and it sounded like balloons because of the echo or something,” Black told Boston. WHDH. “I was kind of looking around someone and I saw the gun. When I saw the gun, I didn’t even look at my wife, I just said run. Run! And she and her friend, a group of her friends, just started running towards the exit.”
Black said he then lunged at the suspected shooter, adding, “I also tackled him and punched him.”
The Pawtucket man told another Boston branch: WCVB“I just grabbed, went for the gun and my hand got caught.”
Black explained to WHDH that his hand became stuck in the “sliding mechanism” of the gun. He said the suspected shooter “looked like he was trying to pull the trigger, but nothing happened. And we wrestled the gun away.”
He said the “strong” suspected shooter “pushed me away, and when he got back to his feet, three phenomenal people grabbed him and tried to put him in a chokehold. That allowed me to get up and as they were pushing him he ended up falling into the rafters.”
Black told WCVB that additional magazines of ammunition belonging to the suspected shooter fell out as he was tackled. He said the suspected shooter pulled a second gun from his pocket and pointed it at himself.
The independent has contacted Pawtucket police and a representative from the city of Providence to confirm reports that Black was the one who intervened during the shooting.
The shooting occurred during a game between two local co-op teams: Coventry-Johnston and St. Raphael-Providence Country Day-North Providence-North Smithfield. All schools said their students are safe.
Police have yet to determine the motive behind the shooting and are investigating “what prompted the event that occurred yesterday,” Goncalves said.
The police chief said that according to video of the incident, it does not appear that there was a confrontation between family members before the shooting.
“There was no indication from the family or friends that there was violence or that they were afraid of this specific person,” the police chief noted.
A GoFundMe page was founded on behalf of the surviving members of the Dorgan family and raised more than $180,000 as of Tuesday evening.
“The weight of this loss is something no one should ever have to bear,” the GoFundMe page said.
An attorney for the Dorgan family wrote in a statement shared by several news outlets: “We are reminded that behind every headline is a family experiencing deep pain and loss. We care deeply about all the families affected by this recent tragedy and our thoughts are with them.”
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