The Blackstone executive who was killed in Monday’s mass shooting in Manhattan was on her way out to meet a friend for a drink when she was shot dead in the lobby, it has been revealed.
Wesley LePatner, 43, was on her way out of the 345 Park Avenue skyscraper where she worked when crazed gunman Shane Tamura, 27, killed her and three others in a horror shooting spree.
The mother-of-two tried to cower behind a pillar for cover but was killed by Tamura, who also shot dead off-duty police officer Didarul Islam, security guard Aland Etienne, and Julia Hyman, a young worker at Rudin Management.
The colleague who was set to meet LePatner for a drink after work then came down in the elevator and saw her lying on the floor, according to the Wall Street Journal.
Another Blackstone employee told the outlet that she had a terrifying near-miss as she was waiting for an elevator to the lobby to pick up a DoorDash dinner when the delivery driver messaged her to warn her about the active shooter.
She said she copied many Blackstone employees by finding a room in the offices that requires a keycard to enter before barricading the door.
The accounts offered a horrifying glimpse inside the heavily fortified office tower in Midtown Manhattan, which also houses the NFL headquarters.
Investigators believe that Tamura may have been targeting the NFL but got the wrong elevator before he shot Hyman on the 33rd floor, where he then turned the gun on himself and left a note blaming football-induced CTE for his mental health problems.
Wesley LePatner, 43, the Blackstone executive who was killed in Monday’s mass shooting in Manhattan, was on her way out to meet a friend for a drink when she was shot dead in the lobby, it has been revealed
LePatner was on her way out of the 345 Park Avenue skyscraper where she worked when crazed gunman Shane Tamura (pictured), 27, killed her and three others in a horror spree
Questions have been raised over how Tamura was able to cause such chaos inside a high-security skyscraper in Midtown Manhattan.
The skyscraper was fitted with security features including panic rooms and off-duty NYPD officers such as Islam, leaving many to question why the shooting was not prevented.
‘The random selection of this target is impossible to predict and really, really difficult to defend against,’ Michael Balboni, former Homeland Security Adviser for New York state, told the New York Post.
‘Did he know he could come into a Class A building like this and just spray the building? That’s very unlikely, you know, typically.’
Many inside the building told the Journal that they were wrapping up a long workday on Monday evening when alarms blared inside, and they were sent two messages, the first telling them to evacuate and a second telling them to shelter in place.
KPMG tax associate Jon Ferrer said he initially brushed off the alarm sounding in his office, until a colleague told him there was an active shooter prowling their building.
‘My heart sank to my stomach,’ Ferrer said.
Questions have been raised over how Tamura was able to cause such chaos inside a high-security skyscraper in Midtown Manhattan as 345 Park Avenue (pictured), which is equipped with security features including panic rooms and off-duty NYPD officers
Didarul Islam, 36, and Julia Hyman, 27, were also killed during the Monday evening massacre
Security guard Aland Etienne, 46, was also killed. Gunman Shane Tamura ended the massacre by taking his own life
Like other colleagues, Ferrer said he was ushered into a partner’s office where they barricaded the door and windows before sitting and waiting anxiously for the all-clear.
The sudden vulnerability has shaken many in Midtown Manhattan, where high-security buildings like 345 Park Avenue are designed with massive safety features.
After breaching the lobby, Tamura reportedly shot at one of the turnstiles to then enter an elevator.
Investigators said that they believe Tamura mistakenly got off at the wrong floor, intending to enter the NFL offices but instead got off on the 33rd floor where Rudin Management is based.
There, he killed Hyman before turning the gun on himself.
Wesley LaPatner left behind husband Evan (pictured Tuesday), a private equity investment founder, and two young sons after the tragedy in the skyscraper
Tamura was a star football player while growing up in California and appeared to blame the National Football League for his behavior – even though he never played for the NFL
He was found with a letter on his body indicating he had grievances with the NFL and its handling of chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE) after the rampage.
In the note he railed against the NFL and pleaded for his brain to be studied.
‘Terry Long football gave me CTE and it caused me to drink a gallon of antifreeze,’ Tamura wrote, according to CNN. ‘You can’t go against the NFL, they’ll squash you.’
The shooter was referring to former Pittsburgh Steeler Terry Long, who committed suicide by drinking antifreeze in 2006 after suffering from CTE.
‘Study my brain please I’m sorry Tell Rick I’m sorry for everything,’ the note read.
