US mass shooting: Former NFL pro killed 5, then himself
Former professional football player Phillip Adams has fatally shot five people and then taken his own life in the US state of South Carolina.
The former San Francisco 49ers cornerback shot dead a prominent South Carolina doctor, his wife, two grandchildren and another man on Wednesday in the city of Rock Hill.
He then returned to his parents' house, where he killed himself after a standoff with police early Thursday.
Dr. Robert Lesslie, 70, and his wife, Barbara Lesslie, 69, were pronounced dead at the scene along with grandchildren Adah Lesslie, 9, and Noah Lesslie, 5.
A fifth victim, James Lewis, 38, from Gastonia, was found shot to death outside. A sixth person was taken to hospital with "serious gunshot wounds," York County sheriff's spokesman Trent Faris said.
“We are all shocked this could happen here in York County,” Faris said. “This is a mass shooting. Normally you think of a movie theater or a mall, but we are treating this as a mass shooting because there were five victims killed.”
"This is a very tragic, tragic situation and the family does ask that you respect their privacy during this time," Faris said.
Adams, 32, left the National Football League six years ago. He played as a defensive back for multiple teams including the 49ers and the Atlanta Falcons after starring at South Carolina State. He reportedly suffered multiple concussions during his career.
The shooting comes as President Joe Biden unveiled a plan for gun control on Thursday, branding gun violence in the US an "epidemic."
“Gun violence in this country is an epidemic, and it’s an international embarrassment,” he said during his speech in the Rose Garden, citing the Rock Hill shooting as an example.
Pres. Biden speaks before signing executive orders on gun reform: "Gun violence in this country is an epidemic and it's an international embarrassment." pic.twitter.com/WNw6FQ5VuU
— ABC News Politics (@ABCPolitics) April 8, 2021
“We saw it again last night, as I was coming through the Oval Office I got word that in South Carolina a physician with his wife, two grandchildren and a person working at his house were gunned down -- all five.”
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