Shane Tamura, the 27-year-old who killed four people in a New York City office tower before taking his own life, was found to have chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE), a brain disease often associated with football.
Tamura entered 345 Park Avenue in midtown Manhattan on July 28 carrying a semi-automatic rifle. Among his victims was an off-duty police officer. After the shootings, Tamura died by shooting himself in the chest, leaving his brain available for examination.
The office tower houses the National Football League headquarters. New York Mayor Eric Adams said Tamura had been attempting to reach the league’s offices but got off on the wrong floor.
In a note he left behind, Tamura — a former high school football player — wrote that he believed he had CTE and criticized the NFL.
On Friday, Sept. 26, the New York City Office of Chief Medical Examiner released the results of its neuropathological examination of Tamura’s brain.
“Following a thorough assessment and extensive analysis by our neuropathology experts, OCME has found unambiguous diagnostic evidence of Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy, also known as CTE, in the brain tissue of the decedent,” the office said in a press release. “The findings correspond with the classification of low-stage CTE, according to current consensus criteria.”
The office noted that CTE can be present in the brains of people who have had “repeated exposure to head trauma.”
CTE can only be diagnosed posthumously and causes the destruction of nerve cells in the brain while a person is still alive, according to the Cleveland Clinic.
The disease, which has been detected in over 90% of deceased NFL players studied, is associated with significant behavioral changes.
“Study my brain please,” Tamura wrote in his note. “I’m sorry.”
