A gunman opened fire Monday afternoon inside a packed ice rink during a high school boys’ hockey game in Pawtucket, killing two people and critically wounding three others in what authorities described as a targeted incident stemming from a family dispute.
The shooter, identified as 56-year-old Robert Dorgan — who also went by the name Roberta Esposito — died of a self-inflicted gunshot wound, Pawtucket Police Chief Tina Goncalves said at a news conference late Monday. Three people were pronounced dead at the scene, including Dorgan and the two victims. The three injured were hospitalized in critical condition.
The shooting erupted around 2:30 p.m. at Dennis M. Lynch Arena on Andrew D. Ferland Way, where teams from Coventry High School and a Blackstone Valley co-op — including students from schools such as St. Raphael Academy, Providence Country Day School, North Providence and North Smithfield — were playing. The game was interrupted in the first period as gunfire rang out in the stands.
Goncalves said the incident appeared domestic in nature, with victims including members of the suspect’s family and possibly a family friend. A woman who identified herself as Dorgan’s daughter told reporters outside police headquarters that her father was the shooter, adding that he had long struggled with mental health issues.
“He has mental health issues,” she said. “He was very sick.”
Court documents cited by some outlets indicated past family conflicts related to Dorgan’s gender identity, though police did not confirm motive details beyond the family dispute characterization.
A “good Samaritan” intervened during the attack, helping to subdue the gunman and likely preventing further casualties, Goncalves said. More than one weapon was recovered from the scene.
Players and spectators fled the ice amid the chaos, with some hockey players still in uniform when they were bused to Pawtucket Police Headquarters for interviews. Mayor Donald Grebien said investigators conducted about 100 interviews in the hours following the shooting.
The Rhode Island Interscholastic League announced it was suspending all games temporarily “out of respect for the victims and to reflect upon this senseless act of violence.”
No students or players from the competing teams were among the victims, school officials confirmed.
The incident marks the second deadly mass shooting in Rhode Island in recent months, following a December 2025 attack at Brown University in Providence that killed two students.
Gov. Dan McKee said he was monitoring developments and in contact with law enforcement.
Authorities withheld the victims’ names pending family notifications. The investigation continues, with the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives assisting.
