On February 16, 2026, a mass shooting occurred at the Dennis M. Lynch Arena in Pawtucket, Rhode Island, United States. During a high school ice hockey game, 56-year-old Roberta Dorgano opened fire on her family members and a family friend. The incident resulted in the deaths of three people, including the perpetrator, and left three others hospitalized in critical condition. The shooting, which police described as an incident of domestic violence, occurred in front of dozens of spectators and was partially captured on a livestream of the game. == Background == Pawtucket, Rhode Island, is a city near the border with Massachusetts. Dennis M. Lynch Arena is an indoor ice hockey rink built in 1973 and managed and operated by EDGE Sports Group. The venue offers public skating sessions and hosted ice hockey games and figure and ice skating lessons and was the home of the Johnson & Wales Wildcats hockey team. The attack occurred two months after another mass shooting in Rhode Island, at Brown University in adjacent Providence, in which two students were killed and nine others injured. == Shooting == The shooting took place at approximately 2:30 p.m. local time during a boys' hockey game between the Coventry/Johnston co-op team and the Blackstone Valley Co-op, which includes players from St. Raphael Academy, Providence Country Day School, North Providence High School, and North Smithfield High School. The shooter, Roberta Dorgano, frequently attended her family's hockey games at the arena. According to law enforcement officials, Dorgano opened fire on four members of her family and a family friend, who were attending the game. Video showed Dorgano arriving at the hockey arena, then exiting the arena and returning not long after. Dorgano was seated with her ex-wife and family, and there did not appear to be a confrontation or conversation between her and victims before she opened fire. Eyewitnesses and video evidence described a rapid burst of gunfire, with as many as 11 shots heard in quick succession, causing panic among players and spectators. Many players and fans scrambled for cover, with some students abandoning their skates and equipment as they fled the arena. A livestream of the match captured the scene as people dove to the floor and fled for the exits. A mother later recounted that many were unaware of what was happening at first, as many believed the sounds were just the players banging their skates on the boards. A player stated that many players ran towards the locker rooms after the shooting began and barricaded themselves in, with another stating that they believed the gunshots were balloons popping. A man who was in attendance at the game lunged for Dorgano's weapon after she opened fire and got his hand stuck in the slide of the gun, preventing it from firing, and she fell onto him. The man was joined by other spectators, and during the struggle Dorgano reached into a jacket she was wearing and produced a second handgun, which she put into her mouth and fatally shot herself with. Police and emergency responders arrived within minutes of the shooting, securing the arena and tending to the victims. The shooter was found dead at the scene from a self-inflicted gunshot wound. == Victims == Two people were killed and three others injured, all of whom except one were related to the shooter. The deceased victims were identified as Dorgano's son, Aidan Dorgan, and her ex-wife Rhonda Dorgan. The three injured victims were identified as Rhonda's parents and a family friend, who were critically injured in the attack and treated at Rhode Island Hospital. == Perpetrator == Roberta Dorgano (1969 – February 16, 2026), a trans woman, was identified as the perpetrator by law enforcement officials. Dorgano joined the US Marine Corps in April 1988, but was discharged three months later in July due to her service being "incongruent with Marine Corps' expectations and standards". Records confirmed that Dorgano previously lived in Jacksonville, Florida, and worked as a truck driver. Dorgano owned a van which was registered with a shipping company in Bath, Maine, and she had told employees working there that she lived in her van. At the time of the shooting, Dorgano was employed at Bath Iron Works. One of the hockey players playing that afternoon was her son. According to her daughter, Dorgano had six children and a history of mental health issues, and she had been "ostracized" from the family due to "a long history of violence and abuse". In February 2020, she accused her mother of assaulting her and acting in a "violent, threatening or tumultuous manner". Her mother was charged with assault, battery, and disorderly conduct though the case was later dismissed. That same year, during a time when she was living in a house that her father-in-law owned, Dorgano reported to police that her father-in-law had threatened to hire an Asian gang to kill her if she did not drop the charges against her mother. Her father-in-law was charged with intimidation of witnesses and victims of crimes, in addition to obstruction of the judicial system, but in 2023, those charges were dropped after Dorgano decided to no longer pursue the case. Court documents showed that an Asian relative who was going to be the middle-man to hire the gang was actually a doctor practicing in the Worcester, Massachusetts, area. Dorgano returned to Jacksonville and her former wife filed for divorce which was finalized in June 2021, writing "gender reassignment surgery, narcissistic + personality disorder traits" [sic] as the reason for the divorce before crossing it out and writing "irreconcilable differences". A photo taken sometime before the shooting showed that Dorgano at some point appeared to have a Schutzstaffel insignia tattoo with a skull on it on her right arm, but whether or not she had the tattoo at the time of the shooting has not been confirmed by authorities. In addition to the tattoo, she posted pro-Nazi content on Twitter, including stating repeatedly that being "to the right of Hitler" was a "compliment" and replying "wp" to an image of someone giving a Nazi salute. Dorgano expressed in her posts hatred for Democrats, support for President Donald Trump, and that she rejected the idea that all transgender people were liberals. == Aftermath == The shooting prompted a significant police response and a temporary lockdown of Rhode Island Hospital as a precaution. Coventry Public Schools of Rhode Island superintendent Don Cowart and Providence Country Day School both confirmed the safety of all players of each team were safe and accounted for. == Investigation == Pawtucket Police described the shooting as a "targeted event" stemming from a family dispute, and officials classified it as a suspected familicide and murder–suicide. Agencies involved in the investigation included the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF), the Rhode Island State Police, and several local departments. Police recovered firearms from the scene, interviewed over 100 witnesses, reviewed footage of the shooting, and located a white van with a Maine license plate that belonged to Roberta Dorgana. Both weapons, a 10 mm Glock 29 pistol and a SIG Sauer P226 pistol used in the shooting, were legally purchased, and she had a gun permit from Florida at the time of her death. Investigators have not determined if Dorgana had a concealed carry permit in Rhode Island. The ATF traced the weapons and found that the Glock had been purchased on September 19, 2021, in Jacksonville, Florida, and the SIG Sauer had been purchased on July 13, 2019, in West Warwick, Rhode Island. Pawtucket police chief Tina Goncalves said that there was "no indication" of impending violence at the ice rink and that they were looking into a Twitter account suspected to be connected to the shooter. Goncalves also said that the shooter's gender identity was "irrelevant to our investigation at this point", but that she knew that the shooter went by a different name than their birth name and was wearing female clothes at the time of the shooting. On February 18, the Pawtucket Police Department searched Dorgano's apartment and work locker in Bath, Maine and also at a storage unit in Brunswick, Maine, in conjunction with the Maine State Police and Federal Bureau of Investigation. Investigators seized an electronic device, firearm accessories, and personal identification documents from the apartment and an AR-15–style rifle, sawed-off shotgun, a handgun frame and other firearm accessories, ammunition, and mail addressed to Dorgano at the storage unit. == Reactions == Statements of shock and condolences were issued by local officials, school administrators, and state leaders. US senator Jack Reed of Rhode Island and Rhode Island governor Dan McKee both called the shooting a horrific tragedy and praised the swift response of law enforcement and emergency responders. McKee said that his administration would launch a statewide "support hub" for those who were affected by the shooting. The mayor of Pawtucket, Donald Grebien, said that the shooting was a "stark reminder" of the consequences of domestic violence and gun violence and Pawtucket police chief Tina Goncalves requested that people "respect" the family of the victims after the "unfathomable" shooting. Michael Chippendale, the Rhode Island House of Representatives minority leader, said that "the firearm was the means, not the cause" of the shooting, and that the shooting was instead caused by "severe or untreated mental health struggles, instability, isolation, and warning signs that were missed or ignored". Pawtucket school leaders said that mental health and counseling resources were being made available for students after the shooting. A day after the shooting, two vigils were held at Slatersville Congregational Church in North Smithfield, Rhode Island, to honor the victims of the shooting and provide comfort for the community. Community members also left flowers and hockey sticks outside the Dennis M. Lynch Arena, where the shooting took place, as a tribute to the victims. == See also == Crime in Rhode Island Livestreamed crime List of filmed mass shootings List of mass shootings in the United States in 2026 == Notes == == References ==