Family of Maine shooting suspect says his mental health had deteriorated rapidly

UPDATE (Friday, Oct. 27): The man suspected in the Lewiston, Maine, mass shootings has been found dead, authorities confirmed. More details here.

The family of the Army reservist accused of fatally shooting more than a dozen people in Lewiston, Maine, alerted police and military officials that he was experiencing an “acute” mental health episode before the Wednesday night massacre, the suspect’s sister-in-law said.

Robert Card, 40, a firearms instructor and longtime member of the Army Reserve, began to hear voices that were saying “horrible” things about him a couple of months ago when he was fitted for high-powered hearing aids, according to Katie Card, who is married to his brother.

Katie Card said the family did their best to reassure Robert Card that the comments were not real, including by verifying with some of the people he claimed had made the remarks. But, she said, “it turned into a manic belief.”

“He was just very set in his belief that everyone was against him all of a sudden,” she said.

Read more at NBCNews.com.

Photos: Lewiston, Maine, shooting leaves more than a dozen dead