A lone gunman opened fire in a Midtown Manhattan skyscraper, killing four people including a police officer before taking his own life in what authorities described as the deadliest gun attack in New York City since 2000.
The Manhattan shooting unfolded during rush hour on Monday evening at 345 Park Avenue, a building housing corporate offices for the National Football League. Shane Devon Tamura, 27, from Las Vegas, drove across the country to carry out the attack, officials said. He stormed into the lobby just before 6:30 p.m., firing an M4 assault-style rifle, then rode an elevator to the 33rd floor where he continued shooting.
Among the victims was NYPD Officer Didarul Islam, 36, an immigrant from Bangladesh who left behind two young sons and a pregnant wife expecting their third child. Islam responded to the scene and was fatally shot. Three others were killed, and one person survived in critical but stable condition. An NFL employee was seriously injured, according to a staff memo.
Police found Tamura dead from a self-inflicted gunshot wound to the chest. In his pocket, investigators discovered a suicide note expressing grievances with the NFL and alleging he suffered from chronic traumatic encephalopathy, or CTE, a brain disease linked to head trauma. The note, scribbled over three pages, read in part: “Terry Long football gave me CTE and it caused me to drink a gallon of antifreeze.” It continued: “You can’t go against the NFL, they’ll squash you.” Tamura also wrote: “Study my brain please I’m sorry Tell Rick I’m sorry for everything.”
Tamura had been a competitive football player in his youth, multiple sources said. CTE has been associated with repetitive head injuries in sports like football, with studies showing even hits without concussions can lead to the condition. Terry Long, referenced in the note, was a former Pittsburgh Steelers player diagnosed with CTE who died by suicide in 2005 after drinking antifreeze.
Authorities noted Tamura had a documented mental health history, but no motive has been officially announced. The FBI reported initial checks revealed no prior information on him in their systems. Police recovered a loaded revolver, rifle case, ammunition, magazines, a backpack, and prescribed medication from his car parked nearby. No explosives were found. Tamura held a concealed carry license in Nevada.
Eyewitnesses recounted the chaos of the Manhattan shooting. Nekeisha Lewis, who was eating dinner nearby, told the Associated Press: “It felt like it was a quick two shots and then it was rapid fire.” She saw windows shattering and a man running from the building yelling: “Help, help. I’m shot.”
Anna Smith, who sought shelter in a nearby finance office, described the scene: “It was like a crowd panic.” Workers in the area, leaving offices during rush hour, heard loud noises and saw people fleeing, leading to a two-hour lockdown in some buildings.
Friends from Tamura’s past expressed disbelief. A former high school friend, speaking to a CNN affiliate, said: “When I knew him, he was a great teammate. He was a great guy in general. He didn’t cause any problems, actually at all, in the locker room or on the field. He was just a guy that really enjoyed the sport, not problematic at all.” The friend added: “When I found out the news, I was really shocked and I just really couldn’t believe it.” He noted Tamura was a year older and one of his “favorite seniors,” though they had not spoken in about a decade.
A childhood friend recalled Tamura as a good athlete and nice person, not capable of such violence, despite not having contact since their early teens.
The Manhattan shooting marked the 254th mass shooting in the United States this year, per data from the Gun Violence Archive, a nonprofit tracking gun-related incidents.
It stands as the deadliest in New York City in 25 years. The last comparable event occurred in 2000, when two gunmen robbed a Wendy’s in Flushing, Queens, killing five and wounding two who survived.
Other notable incidents include a 2022 subway attack in Brooklyn where a man in a gas mask set off smoke grenades and shot 10 people, with 19 others injured, but no fatalities. In 2017, a disgruntled former doctor at Bronx-Lebanon Hospital killed one and wounded six before suicide. A 2007 shooting in Greenwich Village by a Marine veteran killed a bartender and two volunteer officers before police killed him.
The Manhattan shooting came a day after Mayor Eric Adams announced the city had the “lowest number of shootings and homicides in the recorded history of the city.” Adams said: “We accomplished that task because if guns are not on the street, they cannot be used to harm innocent people, and we accomplished that.”
Tributes poured in for Officer Islam. At Manhattan’s Presbyterian/Weill Cornell Medical Center, law enforcement formed a guard of honor as his body was transferred, with officers saluting or placing hands over hearts.
Mayor Adams praised Islam: “He loved this city and everyone we spoke with stated he was a person of faith and a person that believed in God and believed in living out the life of a godly person.”
The attack targeted a building with NFL offices on the fifth floor, though Tamura reached the 33rd. The elevator he took was heading there after a woman escaped upon seeing him.
Investigators continue probing Tamura’s cross-country drive and mental health background. The Manhattan shooting highlights ongoing concerns about gun access and mental health, even in a city touting reduced violence.
EDITOR’S NOTE: Help is available if you or someone you know is struggling with suicidal thoughts or mental health matters. In the US: Call or text 988, the Suicide & Crisis Lifeline. Globally: The International Association for Suicide Prevention and Befrienders Worldwide have contact information for crisis centers around the world.
