The father who opened fire at a Rhode Island high school hockey tournament has been identified as Robert Dorgan, who went by the name Roberta Esposito. Dorgan killed two people and injured three others before allegedly turning the gun on himself in a suspected “family dispute,” according to authorities.
The incident took place at the Dennis M Lynch Arena in Pawtucket, a few miles outside Providence, during a youth ice hockey game.
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Five things to know about Robert Dorgan
Here are five facts we know about Dorgan so far:
- Dorgan, a 56-year-old father, used the alias Roberta Esposito, Pawtucket Police Chief Tina Goncalves said during a press conference Monday night, the New York Post reported. He had undergone gender-reassignment surgery in the past, according to WPRI Providence. “We have identified the person, the suspect, by a birth name, the birth name was Robert Dorgan,” Goncalves said. “We have also learned that the person does go by the name of Roberta, also uses a last name of Esposito.”
- Dorgan has been identified as the father of a North Providence High School senior. The student was competing in the hockey tournament, according to local station WPRI.
- Dorgan, who was sitting near the back of the stands on the home team’s side during the game, opened fire at four family members and one family friend after moving to the front. His child’s mother and sibling were among the dead, multiple sources told WPRI. While the mother died inside Lynch Arena, the sibling died at the hospital. Three victims remain in critical condition.
- Goncalves has confirmed that police were not involved in Dorgan’s death. “It appears from a self-inflicted gun wound, but we are going to investigate that fully,” Goncalves said. “The police were not involved in that.”
- A woman who claimed to be Dorgan’s daughter said that her father had various “mental health issues.” The woman, who did not reveal her name, told NewsCenter 5 while leaving the Pawtucket Police Department that her father was “very sick.” “He shot my family, and he’s dead now,” she added.