Report: Manhattan gunman sought treatment for chronic headaches in Las Vegas

Kevin J. Barr, Las Vegas Review-Journal on Aug 3, 2025

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The Las Vegas gunman who killed four people in a Manhattan office building housing the NFL’s headquarters before taking his own life had sought medical treatment for debilitating headaches, ESPN reported on Sunday.

Shane Tamura, 27, regularly visited doctors, including a neurologist, and received yearly MRI exams, injections in the back of his head and other treatments to try to reduce his chronic pain, according to ESPN, citing an anonymous source close to the Tamura family.

Tamura moved to Las Vegas in 2019 after playing high school football in Southern California, where he first experienced frequent headaches, according to the ESPN report. The source told ESPN that Tamura later sought more intensive medical help as the pain worsened.

The report also said he had been treated for depression and held involuntarily twice for mental health evaluation during his time in Nevada.

Authorities say Tamura drove from Las Vegas to New York before opening fire inside 345 Park Avenue, fatally shooting four people and seriously injuring a fifth before turning the gun on himself. The source said Tamura worked overnight shifts in surveillance in Las Vegas casinos and often returned home, sleeping with an ice pack on his head.

Police say Tamura left behind a note referencing chronic traumatic encephalopathy, or CTE — a degenerative brain disease linked to repeated head trauma — and asked that his brain be studied. ESPN reported he had expressed concerns about football safety but did not openly express anger toward the NFL, according to the anonymous source.

Sources also told ESPN that Tamura never envisioned playing in the NFL due to his small size.

Investigators said Tamura appeared to be trying to reach the NFL’s offices but arrived at the wrong floor. The victims included an off-duty NYPD officer, two building employees, and a security guard.

Tamura has worked in private security and surveillance, most recently at the Horseshoe casino on the Strip. According to ESPN, his supervisor there sold him the assault-style rifle used in the shooting, along with the BMW he drove cross-country. Both sales were made legally, the supervisor’s attorney said in a statement.

In September 2023, Tamura was arrested at the Red Rock Resort after refusing to provide ID while trying to cash out nearly $5,000 in winnings. He was arrested on suspicion of trespassing but never prosecuted, according to the report.

Police later searched his Las Vegas apartment and locker at a Strip hotel but reportedly took nothing from the casino. Tamura’s final notes apologized to his parents and to ‘Rick’ — his supervisor — and requested that his brain be examined, ESPN reported.

If you’re thinking about suicide, or are worried about a friend or loved one, help is available 24/7 by calling or texting the Lifeline network at 988. Live chat is available at 988lifeline.org. Additionally, the Crisis Text Line is a free, national service available 24/7. Text HOME to 741741.

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