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GUNMAN Shane Tamura had a promising future as a standout high school football player before allegedly turning his wrath on the NFL in a tragic shooting that claimed four lives.
The 27-year-old alleged that his years on the field left him suffering from a debilitating brain condition and accused the NFL of concealing the associated risks.
On Monday, just before 6 pm, Tamura departed from his residence in Las Vegas, Nevada, and headed to the Midtown Manhattan skyscraper that hosts the NFL along with several prominent companies.
As the final wave of 9-to-5 employees exited, the disturbed gunman stormed through the doors, armed with a rifle, and began shooting at security personnel and bystanders.
What we know about the Manhattan shooting…
- On Monday evening, Shane Tamura, 27, barged into a New York City skyscraper and fatally shot four people before turning the gun on himself
- Victims of the horror shooting include a police officer expecting his third child and an investment company executive
- Mayor Eric Adams said that an apparent suicide note left by Tamura indicates he was targeting the NFL, which is headquartered in the building
- In the letter, Tamura claimed he was battling a brain condition that was caused by playing football
- An NFL employee was critically injured by Tamura but is expected to survive
- Mysteries continue to shroud the attack, including why Tamura spared a woman he passed in the elevator
He fatally shot a New York Police Department officer, targeted a mother who was seeking cover behind a pillar, and killed a security guard before making his way to the elevators.
New York City Mayor Eric Adams reported that he was likely aiming for the NFL office, but mistakenly took the wrong elevator, ending up on the 33rd floor where Rubin, a property management firm, is located.
When he got out, the heartless gunman shot and killed a 27-year-old associate before turning the weapon toward his chest and firing.
In a three-page note found near his corpse, Tamura spoke extensively about football and appeared to suggest he was suffering from chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE).
This is a degenerative disease caused by brain trauma, and it’s been found in some former NFL players after they died by suicide.
In the note, Tamura made a desperate demand for investigators to examine his brain and determine whether he had the condition.
Years before committing the shocking crime, Tamura had a bright but ill-fated career as a high school football player.
Years-old pictures and videos show him looking hopeful and healthy as he helped to lead his teammates to victory.
In one video interview taken by the Los Angeles Daily News in 2015, Tamura was described as a “stand-out running back” and was asked to relay how he scored the game-winning touchdown.
At the time, Tamura was playing at Granada Hills High School in Los Angeles, California.
In the clip, the interview talked about how the team had to “stay disciplined” despite being down by ten points.
“We just had to keep playing, keep fighting through it, and then just hold our head up high,” he said, describing the importance of their perseverance.
The player insisted that the entire game, he told himself, “A good result’s gonna come.”
TEAMMATES SPEAK
Online statistics for Tamura show that he was ranked 146th in the nation in 2016 for kickoff return yards average.
Caleb Clarke, one of Tamura’s former teammates, described the gunman as a positive person who showed great promise.
“You never would have thought violence was something you’d associated with him,” he told NBC News.
“Everything he said was a joke.”
Timeline of NYC shooting
A gunman stormed 345 Park Avenue in Midtown, Manhattan, on Monday night killing four before turning the gun on himself.
Cops are now investigating why the suspect Shane Tamura carried out the brutal attack and have released a preliminary timeline and are tracing back through his movements.
July 26 – Tamura drives through Colorado in his black BMW
July 27 – Tamura drives through Nebraska and Iowa. He also doesn’t show up for work as a security guard at a Las Vegas casino
July 28, 6.28pm – Reports of the shooting are first made to NYPD. Tamura had moments earlier double parked his car and walked across a plaza into 345 Park Avenue
Once inside, Tamura shoots off-duty officer Didarul Islam working as security dead
He guns down a woman attempting to hide behind a pillar as he sprays the lobby with bullets
Tamura walks towards the elevators where he shoots dead a security guard crouching at his desk
Gunman spares woman’s life after she walks out of elevator in front of him
He travels up to the 33rd floor to Rudin Properties’ office and fires as he walks the floor killing one
Tamura shoots himself in his chest ending his life and ending the rampage
7.52pm – NYC Police Commissioner Tisch posted on X: “the scene has been contained and the lone shooter has been neutralized.”
Clarke said the two lost touch over the years, but they had reconnected recently on social media, and he learned that Tamura was working as a security guard at a casino.
Tamura’s high school coach Walter Roby said that the player was incredibly talented and was a reliable presence.
“He came in, worked hard, kept his nose down,” said the coach.
“He was a quiet kid, well-mannered, very coachable. Whatever needed to be done, he would do.”
Clarke said that when they were in high school, many teammates talked about playing ball in college or professionally.
Despite making some impressive conference achievements, Tamura never signaled any interest in continuing with the sport.
“The only thing I can really think of is there was a point where it looked like the sky was the limit, and then it wasn’t anymore,” said Clarke.
