Police ID hockey game shooter as man who used female name

Rhode Island police identified the man who shot two people to death and critically injured three others during a high school hockey game in Pawtucket on Monday. The shooter, whose legal name was Robert Dorgan, also called himself Roberta Esposito, Pawtucket Police Chief Tina Goncalves told reporters on Monday night. Goncalves described the shooter as about 57 years old. Police found no record of previous interactions with Dorgan.

Why did the shooter target the game? The shooter seemed to have attended the game to cheer on a family member, police said. The shooting appeared to have been targeted, and part of a family dispute that also involved a family friend, Goncalves said. Police also learned that a good Samaritan intervened and tried to subdue Dorgan before the shooter took his own life, she said.

It's still very early in the investigation, and officials are still trying to figure out the story, Police Chief Goncalves said. She declined to comment on the number of weapons the shooter had, the shooter’s exact relationship to the player he seemed to be cheering on, or how many family members were involved in the dispute linked to the shooting. As of Tuesday morning, officials had not identified the wounded and deceased victims.

How are the surviving victims? The three gunshot wound victims were reported in critical condition on Monday. Goncalves reported that detectives were still unable to collect statements from the hospitalized victims by Monday night. 

Dig deeper: Read my previous report for more background on the shooting.