CNN anchor Erin Burnett is facing scrutiny after describing the gunman who killed four people in Midtown Manhattan overnight as ‘possibly white’ despite surveillance footage showing he was not. Burnett angered some on social media on Monday night after describing gunman Shane Tamura, 27, from footage shared by authorities showing him holding an AR-15.
Tamura was seen walking into the 345 Park Avenue skyscraper with ‘sunglasses, mustache, male, possibly white’ Burnett and her co-anchor said. Images of Tamura strolling into the scene with the gun by his waist circulated widely across social media, with many remarking that he had a darker complexion that Burnett’s description. Although some said that the shooter’s race was ‘irrelevant’, others said Burnett was premature in her assessment live on the air.
It comes as authorities said that Tamura, from Nevada , killed four people in a horror spree on Monday before turning the gun on himself. Investigators said that it is possible he was targeting the National Football League, which is located at 345 Park Avenue.
He was found with a letter on his body indicating he had grievances with the NFL and its handling of chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE) after the rampage.
In the note he railed against the NFL and pleaded for his brain to be studied. ‘Terry Long football gave me CTE and it caused me to drink a gallon of antifreeze,’ Tamura wrote, according to CNN. ‘You can’t go against the NFL, they’ll squash you.’
The shooter was referring to former Pittsburgh Steeler Terry Long, who killed himself by drinking antifreeze in 2006 after suffering from CTE. ‘Study my brain please I’m sorry Tell Rick I’m sorry for everything,’ the note read.
Tamura killed three people in the lobby of the skyscraper – NYPD officer Didarul Islam, a 36 year-old father of two, as well as a second unnamed security guard who tried to take cover behind a security desk, as well as an unidentified woman who tried to hide behind a lobby pillar.
A third man was shot and critically-injured in the lobby. Tamura then called an elevator and rode to building management firm Rudin’s 33rd floor offices where he shot his fourth victim – whose identity has not been released. Tamura subsequently ended the massacre by taking his own life.
