Phillip Adams NFL pro id as Rock Hill South Carolina shooting suspect who killed five, including prominent doctor, Dr. Robert Lesslie, his wife and their two grandkids & a fifth person before killing himself at a nearby residence.
Five people, including a prominent doctor, his wife and their two grandchildren, were shot dead in South Carolina on Wednesday evening at the hands of a former star NFL football player – who then killed himself early Thursday morning.
The gunman, NFL pro Phillip Adams was identified as the suspect after a source speaking on condition of anonymity told WSOC-TV that Adam’s parents live near the doctor’s home in Rock Hill where Wednesday’s mass shooting took place and had been treated by the doctor.
The source said Adams killed himself after midnight with a .45 caliber weapon.
Killed were Dr. Robert Lesslie, 70, and his wife, Barbara Lesslie, 69, along with their two grandchildren, Adah Lesslie, 9, and Noah Lesslie, 5, and James Lewis, 38, from Gastonia, who is unrelated to the family.
The Lesslies were found inside their home and pronounced dead, while Lewis, who had been working at the property, was discovered outside.
Ex NFL player Phillip Adams went on shooting rampage after doctor stopped pain prescriptions
#BREAKING: The suspect is former NFL player Phillip Adams, according to his father who talked to @wcnc. Adams is from Rock Hill. https://t.co/aESxF4zCQx
— Ben Thompson (@Bentnews) April 8, 2021
Multiple deaths at residence
All five deaths have been ruled homicides.
The York County Sheriff’s Office said the suspect was found in a nearby home. Officials had declined to publicly identity the gunman.
York County Sheriff’s Office’s spokesperson Trent Faris said a sixth person was hospitalized with ‘serious gunshot wounds.’
On Thursday morning, Channel 9 reporter Ken Lemon confirmed that Lewis worked at Gaston Sheet Metal Services in Gastonia and that the person who survived the shooting was also an employee at GSM Services.
In a news release, the York County Coroner’s Office said it responded to a home around 4:45 p.m ‘to investigate multiple deaths at the residence.’
The sheriff’s office spent hours searching for the ‘armed and dangerous’ suspect before finding him at his home on Marshall Road, not far from the Lesslies; residence. It’s unclear when the suspect was located.
The sheriff’s office spent hours searching for the suspect, who was initially described as ‘armed and dangerous’. The suspect who was found at a nearby home along Marsahll Road, not far from his victims, was found deceased from a self inflicted gunshot wound.
Mystery motive
It was reported that the place of recovery, was the residence of the suspect’s parents.
Adams played as a defensive back for multiple teams including the 49ers and the Atlanta Falcons after starring at South Carolina State. He also suffered multiple injuries in the NFL, including concussions and a broken left ankle.
Authorities had yet to say what motivated the gunman.
‘We are shocked that this type of incident happened here,’ Faris said. ‘It doesn’t happen here. It’s one of those strange things that a lot of people are going to have a hard time understanding and we just hope that everybody understands that we’re going to do everything we can to try to figure out why this happened here in Rock Hill, South Carolina.’
Faris said Lesslie was a prominent figure in Rock Hill and very well-known.
‘I’ve lived in Rock Hill my entire life and Dr. Lesslie was my doctor growing up,’ Faris said. ‘Dr. Lesslie has been one of those people that everybody knows. He started Riverview Medical Center in Rock Hill and it’s been a staple in Rock Hill for years.’
Biography: ER is where our faith can be tested
A biography page of Dr. Lesslie said he and his wife of 35 years raised four children.
Dr. Robert Lesslie has been practicing in Rock Hill since 1981, according to the Riverview website. He received his degree at the Medical University of South Carolina and has worked in the surrounding Rock Hill area and Charlotte.
He’s has also written several books about real-life stories from the emergency room, including ‘Angels in the ER.’
In that book, he said, ’25 years in the ER have taught me a lot of things. I know without a doubt that life is fragile. I have come to understand that humility may be the greatest virtue. And I am convinced we need to take the time to say the things we deeply feel to the people we deeply care about.’
Another excerpt reads, ‘Ultimately, the ER is a place where the faith of each one of us will be tested. Here we can learn who we are and on what ground we stand. And sometimes, it is a place where our faith can be found.’
Rock Hill is a city in northernmost South Carolina about 25 miles (40 kilometres) southwest of Charlotte, North Carolina.
The investigation is ongoing.
