Rhode Island ice rink shooting: Survivors ‘fight for their lives’ as motive emerges
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Two people wounded by a gunman in a deadly shooting at a Rhode Island ranch were in critical condition Tuesday and “fighting for their lives,” Fox News said.
A family contact told Fox News that Robert Dorgan, 56, who identified as transgender and had a history of past family conflicts about his identity, shot and killed his ex-wife Rhonda and son Aidan, before shooting his in-laws.
Gunfire erupted Monday afternoon at a high school hockey game at the Dennis M Lynch Arena in Pawtucket.
ARKANSAS MOTHER FOUND SHOT TO DEATH WITH TWO CHILDREN WROTE A CRYPTIC FACEBOOK POST MONTHS BEFORE THE KILLING.
Police responded outside the Dennis M. Lynch Arena in Pawtucket, Rhode Island, after a shooting on Feb. 16, 2026, left two people dead and three others injured in what authorities described as a family dispute. On the right is Robert Dorgan, identified by police as the suspect, who died of a self-inflicted gunshot wound. (Joseph Prezioso/AFP via Getty Images; X/@VerdadEsPoder)
Dorgan took his own life after the incident, authorities said. Pawtucket Police Chief Tina Goncalves said a “good Samaritan” also stepped in and “tried to subdue” the shooter.
“We can also tell you that a good Samaritan intervened at the scene of the incident, which may have led to the end of the incident earlier today,” he said on Monday night.
Apart from this son, two other brothers – a high school hockey player and a sister studying nursing – are left without a single parent.
MOTHER KILLED TO PROTECT CHILDREN AFTER HUSBAND FLASHED IN RAGE AT NFL GAME: POLICE
Robert Dorgan, identified by police as the suspect in the Pawtucket ice rink shooting, is pictured in an undated photo. (X/@VerdadEsPoder)
People who know the family well told Fox News that Dorgan changed her name in 2020 and started going by the name Roberta.
That same year, Dorgan reported to North Providence police that she had undergone gender surgery and said her father-in-law wanted her out of the house because of it.
Dorgan sometimes attended hockey games in feminine clothing, such as tight denim shorts and tight tops.
Police stand outside the Dennis M. Lynch Arena in Pawtucket, Rhode Island, after a shooting on Feb. 16, 2026, two people died and three were injured in what authorities described as a family dispute. On the right is Robert Dorgan, identified by police as the suspect, who died of a self-inflicted gunshot wound. (Joseph Prezioso/AFP via Getty Images; X/@VerdadEsPoder)
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Dorgan’s ex-wife initially cited “gender reassignment, narcissistic traits + personality disorder” in the divorce papers before the grounds were amended to “irreconcilable differences.”
The divorce was finalized in 2021. Divorce records list Dorgan as living Jacksonville, Floridaat that time also working as a truck driver.
Fox News Digital’s Michael Dorgan contributed to this report.
