NFL executive warned colleagues of NYC gunman after being shot in back, family says
'He was on his way home when he got shot,' wounded victim Craig Clementi's father-in-law Robert Hunter said Tuesday morning. 'He was able to call my daughter and he called upstairs too to the NFL offices.'
Shane Tamura, 27, toting an M4 assault-style rifle, walked into the lobby of 345 Park Ave. at 6:28 p.m. Monday and opened fire, first fatally striking NYPD Officer Didarul Islam, who was working his second job as a security officer at the building, and then shooting Clementi, 42, in the back. Two other people in the lobby were killed in the barrage of gunfire.
Clementi works in the finance department for the National Football League.
'He was able to call my daughter so she wouldn't be worried and tell her that he was OK,' said Hunter, 70.
NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell said Clementi's condition has stabilized at the hospital in a memo to staffers, according to ESPN.
'You never know about something like this, but hopefully he's gonna be fine,' Hunter said. 'He's a great guy.'
'He came through the surgery and there was some spinal damage,' Hunter added. 'He came through the surgery where they stopped the bleeding and they took the bullet fragments out. So nearest I know he's doing well.'
Clementi was already on the phone with NFL colleagues when he was hit and warned them to evacuate, New York Times reporter Dianna Russini wrote on X, citing a high-ranking NFL source. He then continued making calls even while medics rushed him to the hospital in an ambulance, she reported.
Clementi's wife was visiting her parents in Knoxville, Tenessee, with their three children and has yet to return to New York.
'They were here visiting for a while for the summer,' Hunter said. 'Because of the small children, she's still assessing the situation here.'
Hunter said his son-in-law is a stand-up guy dedicated to both his family and work.
'He's just a super, super great dad, super, super conscientious employee,' he said. 'He's really a sharp young man.'
Officials believe Tamura was targeting the NFL, noting his suicide note said he suffered from Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy (CTE), a brain injury often linked to playing football. Tamura, of Las Vegas, who played competitive football in California when he was young, took issue with the NFL in his note. He never played for the NFL.
After killing Officer Islam, and wounding Clementi, Tamura took the wrong elevator to the 33rd floor, home to Rudin Management, where he killed one woman before shooting himself in the chest.
The NFL has offices on four lower floors of the building where the shooting occurred.
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