Columbia, S.C.
The gunman who killed five people including a prominent doctor in South Carolina was former NFL player Phillip Adams, who killed himself early Thursday, according to a source who was briefed on the investigation.
The source, who spoke on condition of anonymity because he wasn’t authorized to speak publicly, said Adams’ parents live near the doctor’s home in Rock Hill, and that he had been treated by the doctor. The source said Adams killed himself after midnight with a .45-caliber weapon.
The York County Sheriff’s Office said they had searched for hours before finding the suspect in a nearby home.
Adams, 33, played in 78 NFL games over five seasons for six teams. A safety and special teams player from South Carolina State, he joined the 49ers in 2010 as a seventh-round draft pick.
Rarely a starter, Adams also was with New England, Seattle, Atlanta, Oakland and the New York Jets, finishing his career with the Falcons in 2015.
As a rookie late in the 2010 season, Adams suffered a severe ankle injury that required surgery that included several screws being inserted into the leg.
He never played for the 49ers again, getting released just before the 2011 season began and signing with New England. Only in 2013 with the Raiders was he on a roster for a full season.
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, the York County coroner’s office said.
A man who had been working at the home, James Lewis, 38, from Gaston, was found shot to death outside, and a sixth person was hospitalized with “serious gunshot wounds,” York County Sheriff’s Office’s spokesperson Trent Faris said.
Faris said early Thursday that deputies were called around 4:45 p.m. Wednesday to the Lesslies’ home, and spent hours searching for the suspect before finding him in a nearby home.
“We have found the person we believe is responsible and we are with him at this time and that’s all I can say about the suspect,” Faris said, adding that they had no reason to believe anyone else was involved. “We are currently at his house and we are serving a search warrant.”—AP
