NYC Gunman Reportedly Left Note Blaming Specific Factor For His Mental Illness

A man who fatally shot four people in a Park Avenue office building reportedly attributed his mental illness to football in a note found at the scene. After the shooting, he took his own life, according to authorities.

Investigators familiar with the case told NBC News that Shane Tamura’s note linking his mental health struggles to his football experience has led law enforcement to explore whether the attack was targeted at the NFL headquarters located in the building.

An NFL staff member was seriously injured in the incident, confirmed by NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell, although not on a floor housing the league’s offices.

In a three-page letter, Tamura claimed to have chronic traumatic encephalopathy, attributing the condition to the NFL and requesting that his brain be studied postmortem, as per police sources. Chronic traumatic encephalopathy can only be diagnosed after death and has been detected in a significant number of former NFL players who suffered repeated head injuries.

The note mentioned consuming antifreeze and referenced former NFL player Terry Long, who had CTE and died by drinking antifreeze in 2005, according to police sources.

Tamura shot himself on the 33rd floor and was found with the note in his pocket, as reported by The New York Post.

Fox 11 Los Angeles highlighted that Tamura, a former security guard at a Las Vegas casino, was a standout football player at Golden Valley High School and Granada Hills Charter High School in California.

Walter Roby, Tamura’s high school coach, expressed his thoughts on the tragic event, questioning if more could have been done to help the young man in his time of need.