Robert Dorgan, the 56-year-old gunman who killed two family members and wounded three others at a Rhode Island hockey rink Monday, had a history of family conflicts and mental health struggles, according to court records and law enforcement officials.
Pawtucket Police Chief Tina Goncalves identified the shooter as Robert Dorgan, who was born in 1969 and also went by Roberta Esposito. The rampage at Dennis M. Lynch Arena during a high school senior night hockey game ended when Dorgan died from an apparent self-inflicted gunshot wound.
Background and Recent Life
Wikipedia reports Dorgan previously lived in Jacksonville, Florida, where he worked as a truck driver. In recent years, he had been residing in North Providence, Rhode Island. He was the parent of a North Providence High School senior who was playing in the hockey tournament when the shooting occurred.
Court documents reveal Dorgan underwent gender reassignment surgery in early 2020, a decision that triggered significant family tensions. At the scene Monday, a woman identifying herself as Dorgan’s daughter told reporters outside police headquarters: “He shot my family, and he’s dead now.” She described her father as having “mental health issues,” saying he was “very sick.”
History of Family Disputes
SEE ALSO: Transgender parent named as shooter in deadly Rhode Island rampage
Court records obtained by WPRI-TV show a series of family conflicts throughout 2020.
In early 2020, Dorgan went to the North Providence Police Department to report that his recent gender reassignment surgery had caused his father-in-law to demand he move out of the family home where he had lived for seven years. According to police documents, Dorgan alleged his father-in-law used a derogatory term for transgender individuals and threatened to “have him murdered by an Asian street gang” if he didn’t leave.
The father-in-law was charged with intimidation of witnesses and victims of crimes and obstruction of the judicial system, but prosecutors later dropped the charges.
Also in 2020, Dorgan accused his mother of assaulting him and acting in a “violent, threatening or tumultuous manner.” She was charged with simple assault, battery and disorderly conduct following Dorgan’s contact with police. According to court documents, Dorgan told police his father-in-law threatened that “if I did not drop the assault charges against my mother that further retaliation could be expected and that was another reason to have me killed.” The assault charges against the mother were later dismissed.
Divorce Proceedings
Around the same time as these family conflicts, Dorgan’s wife, Rhonda, filed for divorce. Initial divorce paperwork cited “gender reassignment surgery, narcissistic + personality disorder traits” as grounds for ending the marriage. However, Rhonda Dorgan later scratched out those reasons and instead listed “irreconcilable differences” as the cause. The divorce was finalized in June 2021.
Court documents from the divorce showed Dorgan was living in Jacksonville, Florida, at the time and working as a truck driver, while his ex-wife remained in Rhode Island.
The Attack
Police said Dorgan attended Monday’s game to watch his North Providence High School senior child play. Around 2:30 p.m., he opened fire on family members sitting in the stands.
The victims included his ex-wife, Rhonda, who died at the rink, and one of his children, who died at a hospital. Three other family members, including a family friend, remained in critical condition at Rhode Island Hospital as of Monday night.
Eyewitness Branden Mello, sports editor for Pawtucket’s Times, said Dorgan initially sat in the top row of the stands before moving down and opening fire. When another father grabbed one weapon from Dorgan, the gunman pulled out a second firearm to continue the attack. Nearly a dozen shots were fired as spectators and players fled for safety.
Police credited a Good Samaritan with helping bring the violence to a swift end. “A Good Samaritan stepped in and interjected in this scene, and that’s probably what led to a swift end of this tragic event,” Ms. Goncalves said at a Monday night press conference.
Pawtucket police said they had no prior interactions with Dorgan before the shooting. The investigation remains ongoing, with detectives reviewing video from the game and interviewing more than 100 witnesses.
Ms. Goncalves described the shooting as “a targeted event” stemming from a family dispute but declined to provide additional details about the motive. Authorities have not confirmed whether the past legal conflicts documented in court records were connected to Monday’s violence.
Federal agents from the ATF and FBI are assisting state and local authorities with the investigation.
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