New York gunman who killed 4 was targeting NFL headquarters, but went wrong way, mayor says
Eric Adams said the suspect aimed for the NFL offices after shooting people in the lobby of a Manhattan building, but took the wrong lifts
New York City Mayor Eric Adams said on Tuesday that a gunman who killed four people at a Manhattan office building was trying to target the headquarters of the National Football League (NFL) but took the wrong lift.
Investigators believe Shane Tamura was trying to get to the NFL offices after shooting several people in the building’s lobby, but accidentally entered the wrong set of lift banks, Adams said in interviews on Tuesday.
Four people, including an off-duty New York City police officer, were killed. Police said Tamura had a history of mental illness, and a rambling note found on his body suggested he had a grievance against the NFL over an unsubstantiated claim that he suffered from chronic traumatic encephalopathy. He had played football in high school in California nearly two decades ago.
The note claimed he had been suffering from CTE – the degenerative brain disease that has been linked to concussions and other repeated head trauma common in contact sports like football – and said his brain should be studied after he died, a person familiar with the matter said.
It also specifically referenced the National Football League, the person said.
A motive has not been determined, but investigators were looking into, based on the note, whether he might’ve specifically targeted the building because it is home to the NFL’s headquarters.
The shooting took place at a skyscraper that is home to the headquarters of both the NFL and Blackstone, one of the world’s largest investment firms, as well as other tenants.