NY shooting: Gunman who killed four was targeting NFL office, says city's mayor

The suspect has been named as 27-year-old Shane Tamura of Las Vegas.

A gunman suspected of shooing dead four people in a New York office block – before killing himself – was targeting the headquarters of the National Football League (NFL), but got into the wrong lift, according to the city’s mayor, Eric Adams.

The suspected gunman has been identified as Shane Devon Tamura, 27, of Las Vegas, Nevada.

Police have confirmed that Tamura had a history of mental illness and acted alone. He died from a self-inflicted gunshot.

In a note found at the scene Tamura claimed he was suffering from a degenerative brain disease, known as Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy (CTE).  He appeared to blame his condition on the NFL, although he had never played for the league.

CTE is often linked to concussions and other repeated head trauma, common in contact sports such as American football. Tamura had previously played the sport in school.

Amongst those killed was police officer Didarul Islam, who had been working for the New York Police Department for 3 and a half years.

Police Commissioner Jessica Tisch said at a briefing that Islam was married with two young boys, and his wife is pregnant with their third child.

The names of the other victims are being withheld until their families are notified.

Officers stand at attention during the dignified transfer of Didarul Islam. / Credit: AP

The shooting happened at 345 Park Avenue, a 634-foot skyscraper that includes offices for the National Football League (NFL), KPMG and Blackstone.

Commissioner Tisch said in the news briefing that surveillance footage shows Tamura exiting a black BMW before walking towards the building while carrying an M4 rifle.

Police said the gunman’s vehicle travelled through Colorado on July 26, then Nebraska and Iowa on July 27. It arrived in New Jersey on Monday afternoon, before making it to New York City on the afternoon of the shooting.

Surveillance camera captured an image of the suspected gunman. / Credit: NYPD

The Fire Department of New York said emergency crews were called to the Park Avenue office building around 6.30pm after a report of someone shot.

New York City Mayor Eric Adams confirmed “there is an active shooter investigation taking place in Midtown right now” in a post on X.

“Please take proper safety precautions if you are in [the] vicinity and do not go outside if you are near Park Avenue and East 51st Street,” he wrote.

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