{"id":474841,"date":"2026-02-18T00:48:09","date_gmt":"2026-02-18T00:48:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/474841\/"},"modified":"2026-02-18T00:48:09","modified_gmt":"2026-02-18T00:48:09","slug":"rhode-island-ice-rink-shooter-killed-ex-wife-and-a-son-police-say","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/474841\/","title":{"rendered":"Rhode Island ice rink shooter killed ex-wife and a son, police say"},"content":{"rendered":"

PAWTUCKET, R.I. (AP) \u2014 The person who opened fire Monday during a youth hockey game<\/a> at a Rhode Island ice rink was specifically targeting family members, killing an ex-wife and son as many fans dived for cover while a handful rushed the shooter to stop the attack, authorities said.<\/p>\n

Pawtucket Chief of Police Tina Goncalves said the shooter\u2019s ex-wife Rhonda Dorgan and adult son Aidan Dorgan were killed and three others were injured: Rhonda Dorgan\u2019s parents, Linda and Gerald Dorgan, and a family friend Thomas Geruso, all of whom remained in critical condition Tuesday afternoon, Goncalves said<\/p>\n

Police identified the shooter as 56-year-old Robert Dorgan, who died from an apparent self-inflicted gunshot wound. Dorgan also went by the names Roberta Esposito and Roberta Dorgano, authorities said.<\/p>\n

Goncalves said there was \u201cno indication\u201d there would be violence at the ice rink in Pawtucket on Monday afternoon, adding that Dorgan had been to many hockey games to watch family members play before without incident. <\/p>\n

Gender identity apparently was a contributing factor to Dorgan\u2019s wife filing for divorce in 2020 after nearly 30 years of marriage.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

\"Police<\/p>\n

Police and ATF agents stand near the Lynch Arena in Pawtucket, R.I., after a shooting at the ice rink, Monday, Feb. 16, 2026. (AP Photo\/Mark Stockwell)<\/p>\n

Police and ATF agents stand near the Lynch Arena in Pawtucket, R.I., after a shooting at the ice rink, Monday, Feb. 16, 2026. (AP Photo\/Mark Stockwell)<\/p>\n

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Court filings show Rhonda Dorgan initially wrote \u201cgender reassignment surgery, narcissistic + personality disorder traits\u201d as reasons for filing but crossed that out and wrote \u201cirreconcilable differences which have caused the irremediable breakdown of the marriage.\u201d<\/p>\n

Court documents show that two shared the same last name even prior to getting married. Authorities have not provided additional details about the same name.<\/p>\n

Under the name Roberta Dorgano, Dorgan posted on X that Rhonda Dorgan \u201chates the person who stole her husband\u201d while posting about the couple\u2019s marital troubles in 2018. A year later Dorgan wrote on social media: \u201cTranswoman, 6 kids : wife \u2013 not thrilled,\u201d and encouraged people to not let being transgender stop them from creating a family.<\/p>\n

A day before the shooting, Dorgan responded on X to anti-transgender posts by actor Kevin Sorbo and Infowars conspiracy theorist Alex Jones by saying that constant criticism of transgender people is \u201cwhy we Go BERSERK.\u201d<\/p>\n

Brutal attack ended when fans rushed to stop shooter<\/p>\n

Goncalves on Tuesday credited several \u201cgood Samaritans\u201d who intervened and quickly stopped the attack <\/p>\n

At least three bystanders were able to contain Dorgan in the middle of the stands as the crowd fled and ran around them, but said Dorgan was still able to reach for a second firearm and died of a self-inflicted gunshot, Goncalves said.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

\"Una<\/p>\n

Una mujer se lamenta luego de un tiroteo en una pista de hielo, el lunes 16 de febrero de 2026, en Pawtucket, Rhode Island. (AP Foto\/Mark Stockwell)<\/p>\n

Una mujer se lamenta luego de un tiroteo en una pista de hielo, el lunes 16 de febrero de 2026, en Pawtucket, Rhode Island. (AP Foto\/Mark Stockwell)<\/p>\n

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The hockey game was livestreamed by LiveBarn, a streaming platform for youth sporting events, whose videos have been shared on social media showing players on the ice as popping sounds are heard. Chaos quickly unfolds as players on benches dive for cover, those on the ice frantically skate toward exits and fans flee their seats.<\/p>\n

LiveBarn\u2019s social media account has been issuing warnings to those who shared the video that they do not have permission to do so. <\/p>\n

Michael Steven, who recorded video after the shooting, recalled crying parents trying to locate their children outside the arena and young people being taken out on stretchers.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt happens far too often in our nation,\u201d Steven told reporters.<\/p>\n

Members of the community held a vigil at Slatersville Congregational Church in North Smithfield in the evening Tuesday.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s absolutely mind-boggling that this could happen to people we know and love and support through everything,\u201d said Amy Goulet, whose son is a hockey player in the community.<\/p>\n

Shooter known for bad temper, coworker says<\/p>\n

Dorgan was an employee of General Dynamics Bath Iron Works, a ship building facility in Bath, Maine, that contracts with the U.S. Navy, David Hench, a spokesperson for the shipyard, said Tuesday. Coworkers said Dorgan often used the first name Roberta at work.<\/p>\n

A colleague, Destiny Mackenzie, recalled that Dorgan used the women\u2019s bathroom and said the two of them would often talk about family. Mackenzie said Dorgan\u2019s ex-wife never came up in conversation but a hockey-playing son was a frequent topic. <\/p>\n

\u201cWhat was supposed to be some seniors\u2019 only chance at playoff games is now ruined,\u201d she wrote in a message to The Associated Press. \u201cImages that these kids and family\u2019s now have to live with. That\u2019s who I send my condolences to is those families.\u201d<\/p>\n

Mackenzie said Dorgan had a bad temper that sometimes led to screaming matches with colleagues.<\/p>\n

Another coworker said Dorgan appeared to be split on the issue of transgender acceptance, one second being proud of transitioning and the next, embarrassed. That coworker, who spoke on condition of anonymity for fear of workplace reprisals, said they knew Dorgan owned guns but was unsure how many. <\/p>\n

Dorgan briefly served in the Marine Corps, enlisting on April 26, 1988, according to military records provided by the service. Less than three months later, on July 13, Dorgan was separated from the service with the lowest military rank.<\/p>\n

Maj. Jacoby Getty, a Marine Corps spokesman, told The Associated Press that the rapid discharge indicated Dorgan\u2019s character \u201cwas incongruent with Marine Corps\u2019 expectations and standards.\u201d<\/p>\n

Getty declined to provide more detail.<\/p>\n

Monday\u2019s shooting came nearly two months after the state was rocked by a shooting at Brown University<\/a> that killed two students and wounded nine others, as well as left a Massachusetts Institute of Technology professor dead. Authorities later found Claudio Neves Valente, 48, dead from a self-inflicted gunshot wound at a New Hampshire storage facility.<\/p>\n

___<\/p>\n

Casey contributed from Boston and Whittle contributed from Portland, Maine. Associated Press reporter Konstantin Toropin in Washington contributed.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"PAWTUCKET, R.I. (AP) \u2014 The person who opened fire Monday during a youth hockey game at a Rhode…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":474842,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[35],"tags":[219989,219990,219995,3072,177214,3071,219994,793,219992,7922,6755,219993,219991,4381,2001,219996,88658,880,219987,219489,219988,219488,200479,4382,99,219997,219486,111939,795],"class_list":{"0":"post-474841","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-sports","8":"tag-aidan-dorgan","9":"tag-alex-jones","10":"tag-amy-goulet","11":"tag-assault","12":"tag-claudio-neves-valente","13":"tag-crime","14":"tag-david-hench","15":"tag-general-news","16":"tag-gerald-dorgan","17":"tag-gun-violence","18":"tag-hockey","19":"tag-jacoby-getty","20":"tag-kevin-sorbo","21":"tag-law-enforcement","22":"tag-massachusetts","23":"tag-michael-steven","24":"tag-pawtucket","25":"tag-rhode-island","26":"tag-rhonda-dorgan","27":"tag-robert-dorgan","28":"tag-roberta-dorgano","29":"tag-roberta-esposito","30":"tag-send-to-apple-news","31":"tag-shootings","32":"tag-sports","33":"tag-thomas-geruso","34":"tag-tina-goncalves","35":"tag-u-s-marine-corps","36":"tag-u-s-news"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/474841","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=474841"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/474841\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/474842"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=474841"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=474841"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=474841"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}