Midtown NYC mass shooting: Gunman appeared to be targeting NFL in deadly office shooting
Authorities say the gunman who opened fire in a Midtown Manhattan office building on Monday night -- killing four people and injuring a fifth -- had a history of mental illness and may have been targeting the NFL.
Suspect Shane Tamura died by suicide after the mass shooting at 345 Park Avenue , which is home to NFL headquarters. Police sources told ABC News he had a three-page note in his pocket claiming he suffered from CTE .
Tamura, 27, played high school football in Los Angeles but did not play professionally; police have found no evidence so far that he suffered a traumatic brain injury or had CTE, sources said. He has no known connection to the NFL.
At the end of the shooting rampage, Tamura shot himself in the chest at the offices of Rudin Management, on the building's 33rd floor, authorities said.
Tamura was seen on surveillance video carrying a long rifle across the building's plaza before he entered the front doors and immediately opened fire.
Mayor Eric Adams said Tuesday morning that the suspect took the wrong elevator bank directly to the 33rd floor, but it appears his intent was to go after the employees at the NFL.
"He, from our preliminary investigation, he took the wrong elevator bank up to the NFL headquarters," Adams said. "Instead, it took him to Rudin Management, and that is where he carried out additional shootings and took the lives of additional employees."
Four people were killed and two have been identified: an executive at Blackstone who was a wife and mom, and a police officer who was a dad of two with a third on the way.
NYPD Officer Didarul Islam was a 36-year-old Bangladeshi immigrant who joined the NYPD four years ago. His wife is currently eight-months pregnant.
New York City Police Commissioner Jessica Tisch said he made the ultimate sacrifice and and "he died as he lived -- a hero."
Wesley LePatner was an employee at Blackstone. The company remembered her in a statement as "brilliant, passionate, warm, generous, and deeply respected within our firm and beyond."
A fifth shooting victim was injured and taken to the hospital in critical condition, officials said. That victim is out of surgery and is in stable condition on Tuesday morning, according to a source familiar with the individual's status.
Police traced Tamura's BMW's movements through multiple states since it left his home state of Nevada on Saturday and entered New York on Monday, about two hours before the shooting, sources said.
Tamura had two Mental Health Crisis Holds in his background in Nevada, one in 2022 and the other in 2024, law enforcement sources said. Those holds typically allow a person to be detained for up to 72 hours if they are thought to be a danger to themselves or others.
According to one source, when there is this type of hold in Nevada, officers have to transport the person to the hospital. Once that happens, medical staff take over and decide how long to hold the person.
A Las Vegas police source said Tamura also got his CCW, or concealed carry license, in 2022 and also has a previous arrest for trespassing in the state.
New York Gov. Kathy Hochul on Tuesday issued an impassioned statement pushing for an assault weapons ban.
"The killer used an AR-15-style assault rifle. The same weapon of war used in mass shootings across America," she said in a statement. "New York has some of the strongest gun laws in the nation. We banned assault weapons. We strengthened our Red Flag Law. We closed dangerous loopholes. But our laws only go so far when an AR-15 can be obtained in a state with weak gun laws and brought into New York to commit mass murder."
"The American people are tired of thoughts and prayers," the governor said. "Congress must summon the courage to stand up to the gun lobby and finally pass a national assault weapons ban before more innocent lives are stolen."
Hochul has ordered flags on all state government buildings to be flown at half-staff in honor of the victims.
"An attack on one of us is an attack on all of us, and we must confront this violence head on," she said. "My heart is with our neighbors in Manhattan, the victims and their families -- as well as the brave men and women of the NYPD."
President Donald Trump wrote on social media on Tuesday that he's been briefed "on the tragic shooting that took place in Manhattan, a place that I know and love."
"I trust our Law Enforcement Agencies to get to the bottom of why this crazed lunatic committed such a senseless act of violence," he wrote. "My heart is with the families of the four people who were killed, including the NYPD Officer, who made the ultimate sacrifice. God Bless the New York Police Department, and God Bless New York!"
(ABC News contributed to this report.)
----------
* Get Eyewitness News Delivered
* Download the abc7NY app for breaking news alerts
Have a breaking news tip or an idea for a story we should cover? Send it to Eyewitness News using the form below. If attaching a video or photo, terms of use apply.
