The contents of the handwritten "suicide note" left by the gunman before he killed four people in a New York office tower have now been revealed.
On Monday evening (July 28), Shane Tamura, 27, opened fire at around 6:30PM in the lobby of 345 Park Avenue, a luxury skyscraper that houses the NFL’s headquarters.
He fatally shot Officer Didarul Islam, 36, who was working a security detail, and then fired at others in the lobby, injuring several people, including a fifth victim - believed to be an NFL employee - who remains in critical condition.
The shooter then proceeded to the 33rd floor, where he killed another person and then fatally shot himself in the chest.
A multi-page note was discovered after Tamura's death, and authorities revealed that it contained long-harbored grievances against the National Football League (NFL) and included explicit references to CTE, a brain disease linked to repeated head trauma.
“Terry Long football gave me CTE, and it caused me to drink a gallon of antifreeze,” the letter read, according to sources familiar with the investigation, per The Mirror. “You can’t go against the NFL, they’ll squash you.”
He also added: “CTE chronic traumatic encephalopathy. Study my brain please I’m sorry. Tell Rick I’m sorry for everything.”
Officer Islam, who was working a security detail at the time of the attack, was a father of two with a third child on the way.
He was remembered as a hero by city officials. “He was doing the job that we asked him to do. He made the ultimate sacrifice,” NYPD Commissioner Jessica Tisch said.
Mayor Eric Adams said the late cop was a “true blue New Yorker,” adding: "He was an immigrant from Bangladesh, and 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. He embodies what this city is all about," cited by CBS News.
The New York police department also issued an emotional tribute to Islam on social media, sharing that he "represented the very best of our department".
"He was protecting New Yorkers from danger when his life was tragically cut short today," the department said. "We join in prayer during this time of incomprehensible pain. We will forever honour his legacy."
Tamura, who had a documented history of mental illness, had driven more than 2,500 miles from Las Vegas to New York, per NBC News.
He previously worked as a security guard at a Las Vegas casino and was a registered gun owner in Nevada. Police found additional ammunition in his double-parked vehicle outside the building.
Years earlier, he had been a standout running back at Golden Valley High School in California, graduating in 2016. “It looked like the sky was the limit, and then it wasn’t anymore,” former classmate Caleb Clarke told the outlet. His high school coach had once predicted “big things” for the promising running back.
The NYPD Commissioner has confirmed that Tamura acted alone and said the investigation into his motive and background remains ongoing.
The names of the other victims killed in the horrific attack and the person injured are being withheld, pending family notification.