Shane Tamura, the 27-year-old gunman who killed four people — including a police officer — and himself inside a Manhattan skyscraper on Monday, said he was grappling with the progressive brain disease Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy (CTE) and blamed the National Football League in a note he left behind, Mayor Eric Adams said.
"A note was found on the suspect," New York City Mayor Adams said in an interview with PIX11 News on Tuesday morning. "He stated that he had CTE, a brain injury known for those who play contact sports of some nature, and he seemed to have blamed the NFL. The NFL headquarters was located in the building, and he mistakenly went up the wrong elevator bank."
New York Police Department Police Commissioner Jessica Tisch revealed on Monday night that Tamura, a former high school football player, drove from Las Vegas, Nevada, to carry out the shooting at 345 Park Avenue. The building is just blocks from Rockefeller Center and St. Patrick's Cathedral.
Investigators said Tamura double-parked his BMW just outside the building on Monday evening, then walked inside with an AR-15-style rifle and sprayed the lobby with gunfire. He reportedly looked behind a security desk to shoot one of his victims and fired at another who tried to take cover behind a pillar, The New York Times reported.
He then went to the elevator bank, where he allowed a woman to safely exit an elevator car, which took him to the 33rd floor. Once there, he went to the office of the real estate firm Rudin Management, where he shot someone and killed himself.
Tisch said multiple 911 calls came in about a shooter inside the building at around 6:28 p.m.
Mayor Adams said Monday that it appears Tamura's intended target was the NFL headquarters inside the building, but he went to the wrong elevator, which sent him to the real estate firm. He said there was no currently known history of communication between Tamura and the NFL. He noted that officials in Las Vegas suggested Tamura was struggling with mental health issues.
"He was not an NFL player. It appears he was blaming the NFL for his CTE," Adams said.
Tamura shot himself in the chest because "it appears he wanted to preserve his brain for research," the mayor added.
Excerpts of Tamura's three-page note, released by the NYPD and cited by The New York Times, show the gunman accusing the NFL of concealing the dangers of football in favor of profits. He pointed to former NFL player Terry Long, who drank "a gallon of antifreeze" and died by suicide in 2005.
"Study my brain please," Tamura's note said. "I'm sorry."
Tamura played football when he attended Granada Hills Charter School in Los Angeles County, California, before he graduated in 2016. He also attended Golden Valley High School in Santa Clarita.
Former teammates expressed shock about his actions in interviews with ABC 7.
"He was a great teammate. He was a great guy in general. He didn't cause any problems, actually, at all in the locker room or on the field," one friend who did not want to be identified said. "He was just a guy who really enjoyed the sport, not problematic at all, so when I found out the news, I was really shocked, I really couldn't believe it."
One of Tamura's parents may have been a retired Los Angeles Police Department member, according to some reports. The LAPD told ABC 7 that they are reviewing those claims.
The LAPD put out a statement regarding those reports that read in part:
"The Los Angeles Police Department is aware of the online rumors and media inquiries suggesting a possible connection between the individual involved in the recent New York shooting and our department," the statement said. "We take these matters seriously and are actively investigating the information. At this time, we are working to confirm details and gather the facts."
