What led a former high school football star from California to carry out a horrifying shooting spree in New York City?
That’s the question investigators and shocked friends are now trying to answer after 27-year-old Shane Tamura launched a violent attack at the NFL headquarters—an act that ended with four people dead, and Tamura taking his own life.
A Final Letter Full of Regret
Before making the cross-country trip from Las Vegas to New York, Tamura left behind a disturbing letter for his parents.
In it, he poured out deep feelings of failure and guilt.
“When I look into you and dad’s eyes, I see complete disappointment,” he wrote, according to the New York Post.
It’s now seen as a chilling foreshadowing of the violence that followed.
A Background That Didn’t Raise Alarms—At First
Tamura grew up in Santa Clarita, just north of Los Angeles, and was the son of a long-time LAPD officer.
He once held a security guard license in California and even had a private investigator’s license in Nevada.
But both had expired years ago. He was also not allowed to carry a firearm legally, due to a documented mental health history.
So how did he manage to get a concealed carry permit in Las Vegas? That’s one of the many troubling questions officials are now trying to piece together.
A Personal Grudge Against the NFL
Police say Tamura blamed the NFL for his mental health struggles, possibly linked to his time playing football.
In a three-page note found on his body, he railed against the league, citing chronic traumatic encephalopathy—or CTE—a brain disease often caused by repeated head injuries.
He referenced the tragic case of Terry Long, a former Pittsburgh Steeler who died by suicide after suffering from CTE.
Tamura chillingly wrote: “Terry Long football gave me CTE and it caused me to drink a gallon of antifreeze… You can’t go against the NFL, they’ll squash you.”
He ended the note with, “Study my brain please. I’m sorry. Tell Rick I’m sorry for everything.”
The Attack Unfolds in Midtown Manhattan
Armed with an AR-15-style rifle that he had assembled using parts acquired from an associate, Tamura walked into 345 Park Avenue around 6:30 p.m. on Monday.
His first targets were in the lobby—he shot NYPD Officer Didarul Islam in the back and opened fire on a security guard who ducked behind a desk.
Then Tamura made his way to the 33rd floor, where he killed Julia Hyman of Rudin Management, Blackstone executive Wesley LePatner, and security guard Aland Etienne.
Police now believe the entire attack was planned—and that Tamura had no intention of surviving.
A Quiet Life That Didn’t Hint at Violence
Back in Las Vegas, Tamura worked in the surveillance department at the Horseshoe hotel and casino.
To many who knew him, this violent outburst seemed impossible to imagine.
“He was quiet, never aggressive,” said former football coach Walter Roby.
Another classmate, Caleb Clarke, said Tamura was the kind of person who “never took anything seriously” and that “everything he said was a joke.”
Police Dig Deeper into His Network
Investigators are now focusing on how Tamura acquired his weapon and whether others may have knowingly or unknowingly helped him.
NYPD Commissioner Jessica Tisch confirmed that an associate had sold him the lower receiver used in the rifle and that more interviews and search warrants were underway in Las Vegas.
“This was a premeditated, targeted, and suicidal act,” CNN’s John Miller, a former NYPD deputy commissioner, said in a briefing.
A City and Community Left Reeling
As authorities work through the aftermath, many are grappling with how a man once full of promise ended up carrying out one of the most shocking attacks in recent New York memory.
A haunting combination of mental health struggles, past trauma, and apparent resentment toward the NFL has left families devastated—and raised major questions about gun access, athlete brain injuries, and warning signs missed.