Former NFL Player Suspected Of Killing Five In US, Then Himself

Washington, April 8 (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 8th Apr, 2021 ) :A former American professional football player is suspected of killing five people including a doctor and his wife in the state of South Carolina before dying by suicide, US media reported Thursday.

The suspect, identified as former San Francisco 49ers cornerback Phillip Adams, allegedly fatally shot the five victims Wednesday in the city of Rock Hill.

He then returned to his parents' house, where he killed himself early Thursday after a standoff with police.

The five victims include a 70-year-old doctor, his 69-year-old spouse and two of their grandchildren, aged five and nine, as well as a 38-year-old man killed outside their house.

A sixth person was hospitalized with serious gunshot wounds, York County sheriff's spokesman Trent Faris said.

Neither the York County medical examiner's office nor the sheriff's department responded to AFP's request for confirmation of the suspect's identity.

Speaking to a local television channel, Adams' father Alonzo said he believed playing professional football had "messed him up." Adams' professional career, from 2010-2015, was marred by injuries, including concussions.

In addition to the 49ers, he also played for the New England Patriots, the New York Jets, the Oakland Raiders and the Atlanta Falcons.

The quintuple murder comes as the United States is still reeling from two mass shootings in early 2021 in Atlanta and Boulder, Colorado.

US President Joe Biden, who unveiled a plan for gun control on Thursday, branded gun violence in the country an "epidemic" and an "international embarrassment."During his speech, Biden cited the Rock Hill shooting as an example.