A 27-year-old who killed four people and himself in a July shooting at an office tower in Manhattan had the degenerative brain condition chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE), according to the New York City medical examiner.
The office “found unambiguous diagnostic evidence” of a low-stage case in the brain tissue of the gunman, Shane Devon Tamura, 27.
Tamura, a former high school football player, thought he may have been suffering from the condition, and the shooting targeted a building that’s home to offices of the NFL, whose athletes are prone to getting CTE.
At the scene of the July 28 shooting, police found a note with Tamura’s body. In it, the 27-year-old railed against the league and accused it of hiding the dangers of conditions like CTE. Tamura requested in the note his brain be studied for the disease.
Tamura, who played high school football in California, regularly took “some big hits” that left him “looking empty,” a former teammate previously told The Independent.
“It’s hard to convey, but Shane was really fast, and ran really hard, and he was really small,” Tobenna Okunna said. “So, all that speed and energy running into these massive people… I do remember Shane taking some big hits.”
Authorities said Tamura, who lived in Las Vegas prior to the shooting working casino security, had “a documented mental health history.”
The 27-year-old was nonetheless able to obtained a concealed carry permit from Las Vegas police.
In June of this year, a tipster at a Las Vegas gun show told police Tamura had bought a suspicious amount of ammunition and an aftermarket gun trigger. Police say Tamura drove across the country to Manhattan before the shooting and was carrying an assault rifle-style weapon and a revolver at the time of the attack.
CTE has been linked to football players with mental health struggles in the past.
In 2005, former Pittsburg Steelers offensive Lineman Terry Long killed himself, and it was later discovered he had been suffering from CTE.
The July shooting, at a prominent Midtown office building, killed real estate associate Julia Hyman, New York City police officer Didarul Islam, Blackstone executive Wesley LePatner, and security guard Aland Etienne.
