Five of a North Carolina family shot dead
Sheriff officials guard the home where the shooting occurred. — BBC Photo
Sheriff officials guard the home where the shooting occurred. — BBC Photo
Five of a family were shot dead in South Carolina while the local police suspect that the killer is 32-year old former NFL player Phillip Adams.
The deceased are Robert Lesslie, 70, a well-known physician of his community, his wife Barbara Lesslie, 69, grandchildren Adah Lesslie, 9, and Noah Lesslie, 5, and worker James Lewis, 38.
The family were found in their home in Rock Hill, South Carolina, 30 miles from Charlotte, North Carolina.
The attack came as President Joe Biden announced new gun control measures.
Officials said the murders were committed on Wednesday evening by Adams who then killed himself after a standoff with the police, reports BBC.
They said that Adams’ parents live near the doctor’s home, and that he shot himself in a bedroom there after the police attempts to get him to leave the house voluntarily failed.
The motive for the attack remains unclear.
‘There’s nothing right now that makes sense to any of us,’ York County sheriff Kevin Tolson told reporters on Thursday.
Earlier on Thursday, a spokesman for the Sheriff’s Office, Trent Faris, said that ‘Dr Lesslie was my doctor growing up. Dr Lesslie has been one of those people that everybody knows. …a staple in Rock Hill for years.’
A person who spoke to the Associated Press on condition of anonymity said that Lesslie had treated Adams.
Lewis was a technician with Gaston Sheet Metal Services working at the home, according to a Facebook post by the company. Another worker at the home, Robert Shook, was also shot and taken to hospital where he has undergone multiple surgeries.
‘Both men involved in this incident are long-standing, beloved members of our family at GSM,’ the company wrote on Facebook.
Lesslie had been married to his wife for over 40 years, according to an online biography. He was a well-known doctor and author of books about medicine.
He also founded the Riverview Medical Center and Riverview House Calls/Riverview Hospice and Palliative Care.
Adams played in 78 NFL games over five seasons for six teams, including the San Francisco 49ers and New York Jets.
In the 2010 season, he suffered a severe ankle injury that left him with screws in his leg, according to CBS News. In 2012, he suffered two concussions over three games while playing for the Oakland Raiders.
A man who claimed to be Adams’ father told WNCN-TV that his son was the attacker. ‘I think the football messed him up,’ Alonzo Adams told the station.
“He didn’t talk much and he didn’t bother nobody,’ he added.
On Thursday, an NFL spokesperson expressed condolences in a statement, saying: ‘Our hearts go out to the families and friends of the victims of this devastating tragedy.’
BBC
