The man who walked into the New York City office building that houses the National Football League’s headquarters and opened fire might have been targeting the NFL when he shot and killed four people, including an NYPD officer, according to multiple reports including CNN, ABC and NY1, among others.
A law enforcement official briefed on the investigation tells CNN that papers found on the body of Shane Devon Tamura indicate he had grievances with the league over its handling of CTE, a brain disease linked to head trauma. Sources tell CNN that Tamura was a competitive football player in his youth.
Carrying an M4 rifle, the gunman walked into the building at 345 Park Avenue on Monday afternoon, July 28, and opened fire in the lobby, New York City Police Commissioner Jessica Tisch said at a news conference. He then got on an elevator, got off at the 33rd floor and shot someone else before turning the gun on himself.
The NFL offices are located on the fifth floor of the building.
What is CTE?
CTE, or chronic traumatic encephalopathy is a degenerative brain condition that happens after repeated head injuries. It has been commonly associated with football players, and can result even if they haven’t experienced a concussion.
According to the Concussion Legacy Foundation, symptoms do not generally begin appearing until years after the onset of head impacts.
Symptoms are similar to those found in patients suffering from Alzheimer’s Disease, according to Dr. Ann McKee, director of the UNITE Brain Bank at Boston University and perhaps the foremost authority on CTE through her years of research on the subject.
NFL players diagnosed with CTE
In 2023, Boston University’s CTE Center updated the research it’s been conducting since 2008 to announce that 345 of 376 former NFL players whose brains it studied (91.7%) have been diagnosed with CTE.
Among the more prominent players to have been linked to CTE:
Hall of Fame linebacker Junior Seau
Pro Bowl offensive lineman Conrad Dobler
Tight end Frank Wycheck
Defensive back, TV analyst Irv Cross
Wide receiver Charles Johnson
Wide receiver Demaryius Thomas
Tight end Aaron Hernandez
Wide receiver Chris Henry
Wide receiver Vincent Jackson
Linebacker Jovan Belcher
Lineman Terry Long
(This story was updated with new information.)