Officials Investigate Motive Behind Deadly NYC Office Building Shooting

A 27-year-old former high school footballer, Shane Tamura, unleashed a deadly shooting at a Park Avenue skyscraper housing the NFL’s headquarters, killing four, including a police officer and a security guard, before taking his own life. A handwritten note in his wallet accused the NFL of hiding the dangers of chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE), a brain disease linked to repeated head trauma in sports like football.

Tamura, a Las Vegas casino security worker with a history of mental illness, drove cross-country and entered the building Monday evening, surveillance footage shows. Armed with an AR-15-style rifle, he opened fire in the lobby, killing Officer Didarul Islam and real estate executive Wesley LePatner. Mistaking his elevator, Tamura reached the 33rd floor, where he killed a Rudin Management employee and shot an NFL staffer, who survived.

Investigators are probing Tamura’s motives and plan to question a man who supplied parts for the rifle. His note expressed regret and requested his brain be studied for CTE, which can only be confirmed post-mortem. The NFL, which acknowledged CTE’s link to football in 2016, has paid over $1.4 billion in concussion-related settlements. Commissioner Roger Goodell called the attack “unspeakable.”

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A Tuesday vigil near the site saw faith leaders and officials, including Mayor Eric Adams and Governor Kathy Hochul, advocate for stricter gun laws. Officer Islam, a Bangladeshi immigrant, leaves a pregnant wife and two children. “He was a friendly, hardworking brother,” said friend Tanjim Talukdar.

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