A gunman who killed four people when he raided a tower in downtown New York on Monday evening left a message blaming the National Football League (NFL) for a brain injury, according to Mayor Eric Adams.
The shooter, 27-year-old Shane Tamura of Las Vegas, shot himself after opening fire in a building housing the American Football League’s offices but travelled to a different part of the building after taking the incorrect lift.
According to Adams, the gunman carried a note blaming his mental condition on CTE, a brain ailment caused by head trauma.
Tamura played football as a youth but did not make it to the NFL, according to former teammates.
Didarul Islam, a 36-year-old New York City police officer and security guard at the building, was among those slain.
Another victim was a Blackstone employee named Wesley LePatner.
Two male citizens were also slain. In a note to staff, NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell also stated that an employee was “seriously injured” in the incident.
US President Donald Trump, who was in Scotland, said in a statement that he has been briefed on the “tragic shooting.”
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According to the statement, Trump trusts US law enforcement officials to “get to the bottom of why this crazed lunatic committed such a senseless act of violence.”
Speaking on a possible motive on the part of Tamura, Eric Adams told CBS, “[He] did have a note on him. The note alluded to that he felt he had CTE, a known brain injury for those who participate in contact sports.
“He appeared to have blamed the NFL for his injury.”
Chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE) is a brain illness caused by repetitive blows to the head.
According to a senior source who spoke with ABC News, Tamura’s reported note says, “Study my brain, please.” Tamura is believed to have replied, “I’m sorry.”
According to startled ex-teammates, the alleged attacker played American football in high school in California.
Tamura had a jokey demeanour, according to one student, and a former coach characterised him as a talented and hard-working running back who made “a great player.”
The gunman appears to have driven from Las Vegas to New York before carrying out the attack at 345 Park Avenue using an assault-style rifle.
Tamura is thought to have opened fire in the building’s foyer before entering a lift to the skyscraper’s 33rd floor and continuing to fire.
According to Mayor Adams, a preliminary inquiry revealed that the gunman entered the Rudin Management office by accident. Tamura later turned the gun on himself.
The event disrupted Midtown Manhattan and public transportation. A BBC journalist on the scene reported seeing hundreds of police vehicles and at least one person being carried away on a stretcher with a bloodied chest.
Bystanders reported hearing what sounded like gunshots, and police advised individuals in the area, including the BBC journalist, to seek shelter in neighbouring buildings.
Police moved floor by floor to clear the building, which took several hours.
One woman, Nekeisha Lewis, stated that she was eating dinner with friends on the plaza when she heard gunfire. “It felt like you were in a warzone almost,” she told NBC News.
Ms. Lewis described the incident as “literally the most scary situation I’ve ever been in” after seeing an injured man flee out of the building.
City officials paid tribute to Islam, who moved to the United States from Bangladesh, had two children, and was expecting a third with his pregnant wife.
“He was doing the job that we asked him to do,” said New York Police Commissioner Jennifer Tisch. “He put himself in harm’s way. He made the ultimate sacrifice.”
Tisch continued, “He died as he lived—a hero.”
Members of Islam’s Bangladeshi community told the New York Times that Islam moved to the United States and worked as a school security guard before becoming a police officer. They stated that their friend was an active member of his mosque and mentored young men in the region.
The company identified Wesley LePatner, a Blackstone employee, as “brilliant, passionate, warm, generous, and deeply respected within our firm and beyond.
“She embodied the best of Blackstone.”
Details regarding the two other victims, as well as the NFL employee injured in the incident, have not yet been made public.
