The transgender dad who carried out a shooting at a Rhode Island high school hockey game had a disturbing history of sharing antisemitic and racist content on social media, recent posts reveal.
Known as Roberta Esposito, the shooter, Robert Dorgan, had a track record of posting thousands of unhinged comments on his X account before the tragic incident at the Pawtucket ice rink, where he killed two family members and injured three others before taking his own life.
The 56-year-old frequently made alarming statements expressing anti-trans hate and promoting his pro-Nazi beliefs while engaging with or reposting other people’s extreme content.
The day prior to the shooting, Dorgan made a derogatory comment about Asians in response to a video praising Adolf Hitler, showing his troubling mindset.
He also repeatedly referenced “white power” and “white pride worldwide” in his posts and shared videos of individuals performing the Nazi salute.
On the night before the shooting, Dorgan posted a threatening message on X directed at a user who referred to trans Democratic Rep. Sarah McBride as a man, hinting at the violent act to come.
Following his gender reassignment surgery in 2020, Dorgan carried out the shooting at the ice rink, targeting his own family members in the stands, resulting in two fatalities and critically injuring three others.
The shooting occurred amidst ongoing legal disputes related to his transgender identity, with court records detailing his ex-wife’s concerns about his behavior and mental health issues.
The three individuals injured in the shooting, including two relatives and a family friend, remained in critical condition following the tragic incident.
Identified as the gunman’s daughter, a woman leaving the Pawtucket police station described her father as having mental health issues and being “very sick,” shedding light on the possible motives behind the violent act.
“He shot my family and he’s dead now,” she revealed.
