LEWISTON, Maine (AP) 鈥 Sean Hodgson watched and worried as his best friend of nearly two decades unraveled. His former roommate and fellow U.S. Army reservist's anger and paranoia were mounting, he had access to guns, and he refused to get help. So Hodgson did the hardest thing of his life: He sent a text about Robert Card to their Army supervisor.
鈥淚 believe he鈥檚 going to snap and do a ,鈥 he wrote on Sept. 15.
Six weeks later, Card fatally shot at a bowling alley and a bar in Lewiston before killing himself. His body was found in a trailer after a .
鈥淚 wasn鈥檛 in his head. I don鈥檛 know exactly what went on,鈥 Hodgson told The Associated Press last week in an exclusive interview, his first since the Oct. 25 shootings. 鈥淏ut I do know I was right.鈥
The series of about Card have been well documented. In May, that Card had grown paranoid, and they expressed concern about his access to guns. In July, Card was hospitalized in a psychiatric unit after shoving a fellow reservist and locking himself in a motel room. In August, the Army barred him from handling weapons on duty and declared him nondeployable.
In September, Hodgson raised the most glaring red flag, telling authorities to change the passcode to the gate at their Army Reserve training facility and arm themselves if Card showed up.
鈥淧lease,鈥 he wrote. 鈥淚 believe he鈥檚 messed up in the head.鈥
But authorities declined to confront Card 鈥 the clearest example of the missed opportunities to intervene and prevent the . That's hard to swallow for Hodgson, who鈥檚 pushing back against for law enforcement that described him as 鈥渙ver the top鈥 and 鈥渁larmist.鈥
鈥淚 literally spelled it out for them,鈥 said Hodgson, 43, referred to by only his last name in documents on the case. 鈥淚 don鈥檛 know how clear I could have gotten.鈥
Hodgson鈥檚 account, taken with law enforcement documents, videos and other interviews, provides the most comprehensive picture to date of potential missteps leading up to the attack.
In response to AP's questions, the Army Reserve said in a statement this week that no one should jump to conclusions until its own investigation and an independent probe by the Army inspector general are finalized.
鈥淎ny speculation at this point without having all the details could affect the outcome of the investigation,鈥 the statement said. Officials wouldn't comment further.
Sheriff Joel Merry 鈥 of Sagadahoc County, where Card lived 鈥 didn鈥檛 respond to AP鈥檚 questions for this story but suggested a need for public policy changes. He previously said his office has been 鈥渇ully transparent.鈥
Hodgson said he doesn't know where the failings occurred but believes more could have been done.
鈥淚 understand he did a horrific thing. I don鈥檛 agree with it," he said. "But I loved him.鈥
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Card and Hodgson met in 2006 in the Army Reserve and became especially close when they both divorced around the same time.
When Hodgson was evicted from his New Hampshire apartment in 2022, Card told him to move to Maine, and they lived together for about a month, he said. When Card was hospitalized in July, Hodgson drove him back to Maine.
By then, Hodgson said, Card had begun venting to him about his belief that those around him were accusing him of being a pedophile. Hodgson believed some of Card鈥檚 complaints were true 鈥 a stemming from the fact that another Robert Card is on the state鈥檚 sex offender registry.
鈥淚 always stuck by him,鈥 Hodgson said.
In September, after a night out, Card began 鈥渇lipping out,鈥 Hodgson said 鈥 pounding the steering wheel and almost crashing multiple times. After Hodgson begged him to pull over, he said, Card punched him in the face.
Hodgson told Card to drop him off at a gas station near his house.
鈥淚 love you, and I鈥檒l always be here for you no matter what,鈥 he said he told Card.
Hodgson sent the text to his supervisor two days later. He didn鈥檛 speak to Card after that, he said.
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After his text, Hodgson said, military officials followed up, asking whether Card threatened specific people. But they didn鈥檛 ask for help in approaching Card, he said.
Authorities briefly staked out the Army Reserve Center and visited Card鈥檚 home. They declined to confront him, fearing that would 鈥渢hrow a stick of dynamite on a pool of gas,鈥 according to video released last month by the Sagadahoc County Sheriff鈥檚 Office.
In the videos, officials downplayed Hodgson鈥檚 warning, suggesting he might have been drunk when he texted at 2:04 a.m. Speaking to police at the training center, Army Reserve Capt. Jeremy Reamer describes Hodgson as 鈥渘ot the most credible of our soldiers鈥 and later tells Sagadahoc Sheriff Sgt. Aaron Skolfield his message should be taken 鈥渨ith a grain of salt.鈥
Hodgson, unaware of those comments until contacted by AP, acknowledged in a series of interviews that he struggles with post-traumatic stress disorder and alcohol addiction but said he wasn't drinking that night and was awake because he works nights and was waiting for his boss to call.
Hodgson also acknowledges that he faces two criminal charges, one alleging he assaulted a woman he was dating in 2022 and another alleging that he violated his bail conditions by possessing alcohol last month. But he said authorities should have taken him more seriously given his relationship with Card, his training on threat detection and mitigation, and his previous work as a security officer at a nuclear plant.
鈥淭hat was the most difficult thing I ever had to do, was report him to command, and I did that. And for them to discredit me?鈥 he said. 鈥淚t pisses me off because all they had to do is listen.鈥
In a text this week, Reamer declined to comment on questions from AP.
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For weeks after sending the text, Hodgson said he prayed that it wouldn't come true. But as soon as he heard about the shooting, he called his sergeant.
鈥淚 don鈥檛 believe in coincidences,鈥 he said he told him. 鈥淚 know it鈥檚 Robert Card.鈥
More than two months later, Hodgson said, he hates that Card 鈥渢ook the easy way out" and isn鈥檛 around to answer questions or face consequences. It鈥檚 not the Robert Card he knew and loved for 17 years, he said, and he struggles with that every day.
Hodgson said he wants people to know he did everything he could to save lives.
鈥淚 don鈥檛 know how to express to people how much I loved him, how much I cared about him," he said. 鈥滱nd how much I hate what he did."
