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CNN
29-07-2025
- CNN
NY gunman Shane Tamura who cited CTE was once a standout high school football player
A decade before police say he gunned down four people at a Manhattan tower that is home to the National Football League, Shane Tamura was a celebrated high school football star whose coach once described him as 'lightning in a bottle' and among the most talented athletes he'd ever seen. Now, investigators are looking into claims in Tamura's suicide note that link the deadly attack to his years playing football. The 27-year-old Tamura walked into the office building Monday evening carrying an assault rifle — and a suicide note in his back pocket alleging that he suffered from CTE, a brain disease linked to head trauma, according to a source with knowledge of the investigation. After killing four others, including an off-duty New York police officer, Tamura fatally shot himself in the chest, police said. In the note, according to the source, Tamura expressed grievances with the NFL and asked for his brain to be studied. Police said Tamura's motives are still under investigation, and he had 'a documented mental health history.' The short note was scribbled over three pages and found by investigators after the shooting, the source said. 'Terry Long football gave me CTE and it caused me to drink a gallon of antifreeze,' the shooter wrote, according to the source, referring to Terry Long, a former NFL player who was diagnosed with CTE and died by suicide after drinking antifreeze in 2005. The note continued, 'You can't go against the NFL, they'll squash you.' Tamura, who most recently lived in Las Vegas, spent his high school years in the Los Angeles area, where he played several seasons as a running back for Golden Valley High School in the suburb of Santa Clarita. His athletic accomplishments were chronicled in the Santa Clarita Valley Signal newspaper. A 2013 article described Tamura as the Golden Valley Grizzlies junior varsity team's 'biggest weapon' on offense and noted his coach believed he was the most athletically gifted player. The Golden Valley head coach, Dan Kelley, referred to him as 'lightning in a bottle' in an interview for a 2014 article. Tamura accounted for more than half of the team's touchdowns over roughly the first month of the 2014 season, and was a big reason for their overall success, the newspaper reported. 'He's a game-breaker. You definitely want the ball in his hands,' Kelley said. 'He's even harder on himself when he doesn't take it all the way. I always have to remind him that not every play is going to go for a touchdown.' Tamura once doubted he would make the starting lineup, he told the newspaper. 'Going from JV to varsity is a huge difference and it's surreal to be seeing the ball this much and having the team doing so well,' he said. 'It's great being a big part of everything and scoring a lot of touchdowns, but I have to keep getting better… I need to keep pushing myself.' His older brother Terry also played football, according to friends and local coverage. When asked about his brother's skills in 2014, Terry said, 'We're similar… He's a little quicker though and probably more elusive, too.' Coach Kelley did not hold back in his praise of the younger Tamura. 'This is my 20th year coaching high school football and he's one of the most talented kids I've seen,' he said. 'The sky is the limit with Shane, if he dedicates himself to the weight room and becoming the best football player in this valley, I think he has the capability.' A former teammate, who asked not to be named, told CNN he remembered Tamura as 'being well-liked, having friends from different groups in school,' and going biking and swimming together with friends. 'He ran really hard and he really cared about his team,' said the teammate, who said he didn't remember Tamura disclosing any head injuries. Tamura transferred to Granada Hills Charter School in nearby San Fernando Valley in 2015 for his senior year of high school, where he played for the Highlanders football team. Walter Roby, who coached the team, told CNN that Tamura was 'by far my best running back at the time.' 'He was warm, soft-spoken, hard-working,' Roby said. 'He did what you asked him to do and he led by his example… He would come up, smile, hug, warm embrace.' Roby said he never saw any signs of violence or other trouble from Tamura and had no memory of him suffering a head injury. In a video posted to YouTube in 2015 after his team won a game, Tamura answered questions from an interviewer who called him a 'standout running back.' 'We just had to stay disciplined and come together as a team,' Tamura said. 'Keep playing, keep fighting through it, and just hold our heads up high, and a good result's going to come.' Another friend and former teammate also told CNN that Tamura never mentioned a head injury or any kind of mental illness. 'We were kids back then, so mental illness — we don't really pay much (attention) to that topic,' the teammate said. He said Tamura was one of his closest friends, but they lost touch after high school. Tamura reached out to him a few months ago on Instagram just to say hello, but before that, they hadn't spoken in more than 10 years. It's not clear whether Tamura played football after his high school years or if he was ever diagnosed with any brain injuries connected to his athletic career. CTE, which has been associated with head impacts suffered by some football players, is generally only confirmed after death. Tamura's death echoes at least one previous high-profile CTE case: Former NFL player Dave Duerson also shot himself in the chest and left a note asking for his brain to be studied. The NFL has acknowledged a link between football and brain disorders like CTE, and has said in recent years that it has made changes to eliminate some unnecessary contact to the head and neck areas during practice and games. Tamura worked as a 'surveillance department employee' at Horseshoe Las Vegas, a hotel and casino, a spokesperson said in a statement Tuesday. He received private investigator licenses in California and Nevada in 2019, both of which later expired, according to public records. Court records show that Tamura was charged with misdemeanor trespassing in 2023 in Clark County, Nevada. According to a police incident report, Tamura refused to leave a Las Vegas casino after attempting to cash out about $5,000, and security called police, who handcuffed and arrested him. A court database suggests a district attorney declined to pursue the case. Police said Tamura drove his BMW across the country from Las Vegas over the last few days, and that he double parked it in front of the Park Avenue office building before walking in with a rifle. He opened fire in the lobby, killing off-duty NYPD officer Didarul Islam, who was working as a security guard, and then took an elevator to the 33rd floor. Tamura gunned down several other people at a real estate office before fatally shooting himself in the chest. The NFL's headquarters are on the building's fifth floor, but Tamura 'mistakenly went up the wrong elevator bank,' Mayor Eric Adams told a local news station.
Los Angeles Times
29-07-2025
- Los Angeles Times
What we know about Shane Tamura, the former L.A. football standout accused in NFL mass shooting
The gunman suspected of targeting National Football League headquarters In New York and killing four, was a former standout football player at two Southern California high schools. Shane Tamura, 27, was a celebrated varsity high school player at Golden Valley High School in Santa Clarita and Granada Hills Charter. Tamura played football at Golden Valley High School in the Canyon Country neighborhood of Santa Clarita for three years before transferring to Granada Hills Charter School for his senior year in 2015. Tamura did not play for the NFL. Dan Kelley, Golden Valley coach, told The Times that he only remembered Tamura as 'a good athlete.' A 2015 Times article quoted Kelley as saying he was expecting 'big things' from Tamura and several other players. In his senior year at Granada Hills, the 5-foot-7, 140-pound player had 126 carries, 600 rushing yards and five touchdowns, according to MaxPreps. He also won several 'player of the game' awards. He graduated in 2016, the site said. Walter Roby, his coach at Granada Hills, told Fox 11 that he was stunned by the news. 'Shane was very quiet. He was a quiet, hard worker. He was coachable. So whatever we asked him to do, he was doing it. He led by, you know, his actions on the field. He was our, you know, one of my top offensive players at the time,' he said. 'Could I have done more? Could I help the kid? Could I have reached out to him or could you reach out to me? It's just a lot of things I'm trying to process right now.' Granada Hills teammate Anthony Michael Leon told NBC News: 'This is so shocking. I'm telling you, this was one of those kids who never exerted bad energy or a negative attitude.' 'He was quiet, but when he did actually talk, people listened,' Leon added. It is unclear what Tamura did after high school. Mostly recently, he was living in Las Vegas. The initial investigation indicates that Tamura had traveled from Las Vegas to New York, driving a BMW cross country through Colorado, Nebraska and New Jersey over the weekend. Law enforcement said that officers searched the vehicle that the gunman left double parked on Park Avenue between 51st and 52nd streets and found a rifle case with rounds, a loaded revolver, ammunition and magazines, a backpack and medication prescribed to Tamura. No explosives were inside. 'Mr. Tamura has a documented mental health history,' New York City Police Commissioner Jessica Tisch said Monday night at a news conference, citing Las Vegas law enforcement. 'His motives are still under investigation, and we are working to understand why he targeted this particular location.' New York Mayor Eric Adams said said Tamura was trying to target the NFL but took the wrong elevator.
Los Angeles Times
29-07-2025
- Sport
- Los Angeles Times
New York gunman was a former L.A. County high school football player possibly targeting NFL headquarters
Investigators are looking into whether a Las Vegas man who went on a deadly shooting spree in Manhattan Monday was targeting the National Football League after it emerged that the gunman was a former Los Angeles high school football player with a documented mental health history. New York Mayor Eric Adams said Tuesday that the gunman, identified by law enforcement officials as 27-year-old Shane Tamura, was trying to target the N.F.L but took the wrong elevator. Law enforcement officials have said that the gunman marched into a 44-story office tower on Park Avenue that is the headquarters of the National Football League and investment firm Blackstone, at around 6:25 pm Monday carrying an M4 assault rifle in his right hand. He immediately opened fire in the lobby, shooting first an NYPD officer, then a woman who took cover behind a pillar and a security guard behind the security desk. After spraying more gunfire across the lobby, the gunman got into an elevator and went to the 33rd floor, which houses the Rudin Management real estate firm. He then walked around the floor, firing more rounds and shooting and killing another person, before walking down a hallway and fatally shooting himself in the chest. 'Mr. Tamura has a documented mental health history,' New York City Police Commissioner Jessica Tisch said Monday night at a news conference, citing Las Vegas law enforcement. 'His motives are still under investigation, and we are working to understand why he targeted this particular location.' Tamura, who was a celebrated varsity high school player at Golden Valley High School in Santa Clarita and Granada Hills Charter in the San Fernando Valley, had a suicide note in his back pocket alleging that he suffered from CTE, a brain disease linked to head trauma, CNN reported, citing a source with knowledge of the investigation. In the short three-page note, he appeared to blame football for his problems, referencing former Pittsburgh Steelers player Terry Long, who died by suicide after drinking antifreeze in 2005, and expressing grievances with the N.F.L.. 'Terry Long football gave me CTE and it caused me to drink a gallon of antifreeze,' the gunman allegedly wrote. 'You can't go against the NFL, they'll squash you,' the note said, according to the source. 'Study my brain please I'm sorry Tell Rick I'm sorry for everything,' N.F.L. commissioner Roger Goodell reportedly said an NFL employee was seriously injured in the attack. Tamura played football at Golden Valley High School in the Canyon Country neighborhood of Santa Clarita for three years before transferring to Granada Hills Charter School for his senior year in 2015. Dan Kelley, Golden Valley coach, said only that he remembered Tamura as 'a good athlete.' In his senior year at Granada Hills, the 5-foot-7, 140-pound player had 126 carries, 600 rushing yards and five touchdowns, according to MaxPreps. He also won several 'player of the game' awards. He graduated in 2016, the site said. The initial investigation indicates that Tamura had traveled from New York to Las Vegas, driving a BMW cross country through Colorado, Nebraska and New Jersey over the weekend. Law enforcement said that officers searched the vehicle the gunman double parked on Park Avenue between 51st and 52nd streets and found a rifle case with rounds, a loaded revolver ammunition and magazines, a backpack and medication prescribed to Tamura. No explosives were inside. The slain police officer, Didarul Islam, 36, had been on the job for four years, according to Tisch. He was married with two young sons and his wife was pregnant with their third child. The Associated Press and Times staff writer Eric Sondheimer contributed to this report.
