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Laura Coates Live

Four People Killed, Wounded One, in Mass Shooting at Midtown Manhattan Office Tower. Aired 11p-12a ET

Aired July 28, 2025 - 23:00   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

[23:00:00]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

UNKNOWN (voice-over): This is CNN breaking news.

LAURA COATES, CNN HOST AND SENIOR LEGAL ANALYST: Good evening. I'm Laura Coates. And our breaking news tonight, a deadly mass shooting in the heart of Manhattan, leaving four people dead, including a police officer. A fifth person was shot. He is in critical condition.

You're looking right now at live pictures near the skyscraper on Park Avenue where it all hunt down. Police say the shooter is dead from a self-inflicted gunshot wound. They shared this shocking photo showing the suspected gunman walking brazenly broad daylight into the massive office building with an M4 rifle. He is striding straight across the empty plaza in the middle of the afternoon.

And the NYPD is identifying him as 27-year-old Shane Devon Tamura. Now they say he lived in Las Vegas, he drove across the country to New York City, and had a mental health history. He also had concealed firearms permit as well. And police say they don't yet know what his motive was. That building includes offices for the NFL and the asset management company Blackstone.

In a news conference just a few moments ago, the NYPD commissioner explained what happened when this man entered.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JESSICA TISCH, COMMISSIONER, NEW YORK POLICE DEPARTMENT: The building security camera footage shows the shooter enter the lobby, turn right, and immediately open fire on an NYPD officer. He then shoots a woman who took cover behind a pillar and proceeds through the lobby, spraying it with gunfire. He makes his way to the elevator bank where he shoots a security guard, who was taking cover behind the security desk. One additional male is shot in the lobby per his own statement from the hospital.

The shooter then calls the elevator, which opens in the lobby. A female exits that elevator, and he allows her to walk past him unharmed. He goes up to the 33rd floor, which is Rudin management, and begins to walk the floor, firing rounds as he traveled. One person was struck and killed on that floor. He then proceeds down a hallway and shoots himself in the chest. (END VIDEO CLIP)

COATES: Truly shocking to hear these details unfolding. We're learning still more information even as we speak. So, I want to get right to CNN senior crime justice correspondent, Shimon Prokupecz, who rushed to the scene as soon as we even learned that the horrible incident was even unfolding. Also here, a man who is working all of his extensive sources to get us eyes inside the building, our own chief law enforcement and intelligence analyst, John Miller.

Shimon, I want to begin with you because the mayor, the police, they just spoke. They revealed new information about what happened. What are we learning tonight?

SHIMON PROKUPECZ, CNN CRIME AND JUSTICE REPORTER: You know, I'm so struck, dear Laura, by what the police commissioner said, because these people in the lobby, when you listen to that description, they had no shot. Like, there was no way for them to defend against this gunman. I mean, that officer, this was an ambush, a full-on ambush by a gunman who, for whatever reason we don't know, wanted to get inside this building, wanted to get into that elevator, and get upstairs, and kill people, and he did.

And we still don't know why. We know that from -- according to the NYPD, a total of four victims here, the officer plus three civilians. Another person is fighting for their life. People died on that 33rd floor. We don't know why this gunman was targeting the people on that floor.

We also know, and this is going to be significant for the NYPD to come out and say this, that there is a documented mental health issue here.

[23:05:03]

By law, they probably can't speak more about that. But certainly, more about that will come out. And that's going to be a key thing.

It's just -- this kind of an attack in this city on Park Avenue is going to stick and it's going to really change how many of the buildings around us here are now protecting themselves. So much information that we've learned tonight, but there's still so much more, Laura, that we need to learn about what happened here.

COATES: Shimon, I'm so struck because I watch you cover so many, sadly, mass shooting and crimes across this country, and the idea this being the ambush that you're talking about and how many people, wherever they are across this entire country, who have come into an office, bank or an elevator, and come out and been confronted by a weapon of this kind, have no idea what's going on, and no real place to hide and cover themselves, especially in a place that is full of office buildings.

But this hits not just in New York, but across the country. People are probably wondering how and what measures could be taken to protect themselves. PROKUPECZ: You know, you're absolutely right. And think about this. This is happening at the end of a work day. This is around 6.30 in the evening. People are going home. You know, you've worked a long day. It's Monday. Maybe you had a long weekend. It's the end of the day for most people. You know, some of the people may have been just starting their shift.

This officer who is a father of two, his wife was expecting their third child, doing this. This is a paid detail. It's very known here in the NYPD. You do this to make extra money, the NYPD as a program. You could wear your uniform and you work off duty security. And many buildings across the city have this for security reasons.

COATES: Right.

PROKUPECZ: And sadly, that was not even enough in this situation.

COATES: John, I want to bring you in here because we are learning some details about who this gunman is. We know he's 27 years old, from Las Vegas, a concealed carry license from Nevada, as Shimon mentioned, a documented mental health history. We don't know what that really means. But what more do we know about him? But also, what is the investigation to figure out what more they can learn about him? What does that look like for law enforcement?

JOHN MILLER, CNN CHIEF LAW ENFORCEMENT AND INTELLIGENCE ANALYST: So that looks like -- and this is where everything that has been going very high speed --

COATES: Uh-hmm.

MILLER: -- can slow down and be very meticulous. You know from your own criminal justice background as a former federal prosecutor, somebody who's in your old job is sitting there tonight writing up -- you know, these are affidavits in support of search warrants. We need to get into his house. We need to get into his computer. We need to seize anything that could be writings, manifesto, notebooks, diaries, thumb drives, CDs. We need to kind of see preservation orders for his social media.

And they are literally going to page backwards, from the moment that shooting started through his entire life, until they get -- and that includes the medical history, that includes the medications that were found in the car by police. It includes what Las Vegas has on his documented mental history. It includes questions about how did he have a concealed carry permit to carry weapons in the state of Nevada if he had a documented mental history. Was it prohibited? Was it not?

They'll literally be going backwards through every thread and fiber of his life until they find what may be an answer.

COATES: Uh-hmm.

MILLER: As you know, as Shimon knows, as anyone who has been through this before knows, sometimes, when we get through that whole background, even when we find the supposed answer, the alleged motive, when we hear it, it makes no sense to us because it was something that was going on in their head --

COATES: Hmm.

MILLER: -- in their world. And it's often disappointing when you consider the enormous cost of human life.

COATES: I'm so glad you mentioned and outlined what the investigation would look like for somebody who has, apparently, taken their own life. A lot of people might mistake this for being the end of the investigation and that the hands are now tied by law enforcement. But, in many ways, the work is beginning because there's still the idea of trying to deter this from happening again.

But also figure out. Did anyone else know about this? Did anyone else have any insight? And you may have noticed, when people were watching at home, during that press conference, Alvin Bragg was there. He, of course, is the Manhattan D.A. And even though the suspect is deceased, the investigation continues.

And Shimon, we know that one of the victims, an off-duty NYPD officer.

[23:09:56]

I can't tell you how -- when I was watching the press conference, and you heard the commissioner say that he was a father of two young children and one on the way -- as a mom, my heart absolutely sank. As a wife, my heart was to the floor. And I want you to -- do you know anything else we can know possibly about the victims?

PROKUPECZ: We don't know anything else about the other victims. Is that for me? I'm sorry.

COATES: Yeah. Shimon, keep going. I want to bring you back in, John, later.

PROKUPECZ: Okay. So, but we don't know much more, right, like, at this point, because they've not identified anyone. We know that people in the lobby, security staff, sounds like, may have been killed, and then some people on -- from the -- from the building management. And we'll learn others, possibly. We don't have any of the victims' names. So, right now, for the NYPD, they've had to focus mostly on one of their own, their officer.

COATES: Right.

PROKUPECZ: That's why you saw the press conference happening at the hospital. But for this officer, 36 years old, a three-and-a half to four- year veteran of the NYPD, Bangladeshi immigrant, this is distinct. Right? And for this city, certainly, and for the people who work security at all of these buildings across our city, the people in the offices that we work in --

COATES: Right.

PROKUPECZ: -- this is something that they think about. And so, hopefully, in the coming days, I think it's so important always in these situations to learn about the victims. And hopefully, in the coming days, we will learn about those victims and learn more about, you know, their efforts to try and stop some of this. But they really had no -- what's so scary in all of this is that they had no way to defend themselves in this situation.

COATES: Unbelievable. I mean, John, I'd love you to weigh in because knowing your law enforcement background, the way in which -- I mean, people out there, if you've ever had the privilege of watching John Miller sort of working his sources and the people that he is talking to and trying to figure out and ascertain and give us some eyes inside -- I mean, your background is so extensive, but it comes back to the core of a loss of life for this NYPD officer, let alone the victims we're going to learn more about. What's your reaction tonight?

MILLER: You know, this story of heroism and sacrifice and -- you know, we are told by the police commissioner, this individual walked in with his assault weapon and began firing rapidly across the lobby. We don't know if this officer had a chance to get his gun out, if he had a chance to return fire. But what we do know is he was targeted because he was a threat to the shooter --

COATES: Yeah.

MILLER: -- and he was targeted especially because of that uniform. But the story starts where your heart sunk. Why is he there? He's off- duty. It's his day off. Why is he in uniform?

Because the company that runs that building, Rudin Management, contacted the NYPD and said, we'd like increased security, we will pay for it if you will send a cop over in uniform on his day-off and, you know, provide that visible presence in the lobby along with another officer who was in a different part of the building.

But why is he there? He's there because he's got two kids. He made $85,000 last year. He has a third kid on the way. And living around New York City, $85,000, where the wife and three kids and the cost of pregnancy and buying all the baby stuff, you know, that's --

COATES: Childcare.

MILLER: -- that's why he's working on his day off.

COATES: Ahh.

MILLER: And, you know, when you look at Wenjian Liu or Rafael Ramos, who were killed in 2014, I was on the scene that day.

COATES: Uh-hmm.

MILLER: Or Jason Rivera and Wilbert Mora, who were killed in 2022, I was on the scene that day. Or the person who shot the gunman who shot them, an officer named Sumit Sulan. You know, this was a department that I remember in the 1980s and 90s as being mostly Irish. It's now a department whose heroes look an awful lot like the melting pot of the city they police. Another example today, a very sad one. COATES: And suddenly, the mayor, Eric Adams, mentioned the idea of what it was like to go back to the families and have someone come in and -- oh, God, please tell me this is not true. We can't lose sight of that.

Also, I am struck by a request to have that presence. It makes my prosecutor mind hard to say, is there a reason they believe they needed more of a presence or was this just the course of business?

I want to bring in more people to this conversation. I've got former FBI assistant director for the Criminal Investigative Division, Chris Swecker, criminologist and behavioral analyst Casey Jordan is here, also retired NYPD detective and New York Law School professor, Kirk Burkhalter. Kirk, I want to begin with you here on this unbelievably tragic night.

[23:15:00]

I mean, just that jarring photo, we've all now seen a shooter wearing sunglasses, carrying a long gun. Look at the plaza. Look at the time of day. That's what strikes me, the brazen nature of this. But what do you see when you look at that photo?

KIRK BURKHALTER, CRIMINOLOGIST, BEHAVIORAL ANALYST: Unfortunately, I would say I see New York. I've said before that New Yorkers see all types of things. I mean, one of -- uh, if you work in the city, one of the favorite pastimes is to grab a sandwich in front of your building and just look at the bizarre sights that you'll see walk by. So, New Yorkers tend to be somewhat -- somewhat a little unfazed or they'll do a double take.

This is at the end of the day. It's after 6 o'clock. But if you look around the plaza, he had to probably walk by those folks on the sidewalk, and I don't know if anyone really understood that this was someone walking around with this assault replica weapon. So, it was just so incredible that someone could get out, exit their car, and walk so calmly.

And John hit the nail on the head that he walked in the building, he saw a uniform, and he targeted that uniform. He clearly was familiar with NYPD attire and target that -- targeted that individual.

COATES: Hmm.

BURKHALTER: He had the mindset to enter into this shootout long before he entered the building.

COATES: I mean, a picture is worth a thousand words. Right? We wish we had the video to show the pacing of how he was walking, whether people walked by him. Was that weapon concealed in something before that, and then that was shed in some way, and then he continued to walk? Was it positioned in a way that no one passed by? I have a thousand questions, as I'm sure so many people do, about that stretch of the entrance and, apparently, double parked as well.

Chris, let me ask you this because the NYPD, they say this shooting started in the lobby, the shooter hit an NYPD officer first. What does that tell you about how this shooting may have played out in terms of the confrontation and perhaps even planning or expectation of who he might confront in a lobby of a building of that size?

CHRIS SWECKER, FORMER FBI ASSISTANT DIRECTOR, CRIMINAL INVESTIGATIVE DIVISION: Yeah. So, I -- after I retired from the FBI, I served on a board of a Blackstone-owned company, and I attended board meetings in that building.

COATES: Hmm.

SWECKER: So, when you come in there, you know, like most buildings in New York City, you're going to have a security desk very close to the front entrance. There's no point having security if you don't have them visible and very close to the entrance.

So, as soon as he comes in, at 6 o'clock, 6:30 in the evening, it's probably just going to be the security guard and maybe, you know, random one or two other people in the building.

And, you know, as I see him, that -- that video of him going across the courtyard, he appears to be, you know, I'm going to confront whoever confronts me. You know, he has his gun somewhat concealed by his side, but he's ready to confront anyone who confronts him --

COATES: Uh-hmm.

SWECKER: -- to get into that building. And then as soon as he gets into that building, if he meets no opposition coming up to the building, he's going to confront the first person he sees, which is going to be security in all likelihood. And he knows that.

So, you know, that's how it played out, I believe. I mean, you know, he may have had intentions of being there earlier and maybe had some traffic coming in from New Jersey. He just came in from a two-day drive and apparently just, you know, finished his drive all the way from Las Vegas, jumps out of the car after double parking, goes straight into the building with purpose, and engages the security guard or the off-duty police officer right away.

COATES: Yeah.

SWECKER: So, he just -- this was a suicide mission. For whatever reason, he chose that particular building.

COATES: Casey, there's this moment that they brought up in the press conference. And the police say, Casey, that a woman got off the elevator as a shooter was getting on the elevator. And he let her go unharmed. Walk me through how you're processing that.

CASEY JORDAN, CRIMINOLOGIST, BEHAVIORAL ANALYST: Well, I completely agree with everything Chris has noted. This was a man who walked with purpose. Double parked, walked in there with a gun fully exposed for everyone to see into the lobby, and basically takes out everyone in the lobby. I don't even know that the off-duty police officer was, you know, particularly his target. He was just somebody in between the shooter and the elevator.

[23:19:57]

When he gets to the elevator and the door is open, I don't think he is expecting this woman to walk off. And she does not pose any sort of impetus or obstacle for him getting on the elevator. So, he lets her live.

COATES: Hmm.

JORDAN: I think the greater question -- I mean, this is a man on a mission. And mission-oriented is a type of mass murderer, a man who wants to send a message. He's on a mission. My greater question is, did he end up on that particular floor by accident or was that the floor he was intending to go to? You know, did -- was it the NFL or Blackstone, other companies in that corporation -- in that building, that he couldn't access their floors because perhaps they needed a particular clearance from the lobby? We don't know. But he ends up on that floor and shoots the one person he sees.

The next question I would say is, did he know that person? Was that person his target? Seems very unlikely. Then he takes his own life.

COATES: One thing, Casey. Hold on, I want -- I want to unpack one thing.

JORDAN: Yeah.

COATES: I'm going to have you back to -- a little bit too, but describe a little more about mission-oriented. I want to unpack that term. What does that entail to be mission-oriented? I mean, I understand the colloquial understanding of it, but it seems to have a more specific definition for you.

JORDAN: Correct. So, think of a person very often as a product of distorted thinking who believes that they need to send a message or save the world from some particular evil. Could be Blackstone, could be the NFL. We know he played high school football. Did he not become a football player and held a grudge?

But wants to destroy someone or something or some entity that they perceive as an enemy. Think Eric Rudolph, who shot abortion doctors and also blew up, you know, the 1996 Olympics, a man on a mission. It doesn't have to make sense to us.

COATES: Uh-hmm.

JORDAN: It only makes sense in the mentally-ill mind of the shooter. So, they believe that they are going to rid the world of some unsavory entity by taking out something, somebody, or sending a message. This entity, I don't think it had anything to do with real estate. I think he just ended up on that floor. But there was something in that building he was out to destroy. He was on a mission. COATES: Stand by, everyone. I have a thousand more questions, and this is the right panel to answer them as the audience is watching and trying to make sense of what has happened. We are taking a quick break. We'll have much more on the investigation, including what we know about that gunman's travel from Nevada to New York.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[23:25:00]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COATES: The NYPD tonight releasing this photograph of the officer who was killed in today's shooting. Thirty-six-year-old Didarul Islam, an immigrant from Bangladesh, a father of two, a baby on the way. NYPD remembering him tonight as a hero who was just doing his job and trying to protect his city and provide for his family.

I want to bring in Chris Swecker, Casey Jordan, and Kirk Burkhalter, who are all back with me. Casey, I'm going go back to you because we know some information about this shooter. Twenty-seven years old. We have his name, Shane Devon Tamura. He's from Las Vegas, some type of a former high school football player. He had a concealed carry license. He had an expired private investigator license. Paint this picture where your mind goes and what those details might tell us about him.

JORDAN: I would be very interested in knowing what has been going on in his life in the last five years. There was something specific about that building that drew him there, to the point where he drove for two days straight from Las Vegas, pulled up, double parked, got out with his gun and went in there. I don't particularly believe that the floor he ended up on is where he wanted to be.

The greater question is, was he destined for Blackstone because he lost money with them or the NFL because he never got recruited as a professional football player? Time will tell and that will come out.

I mean, the fact that we know he has a history of mental health concerns makes me think he has been festering with an idea that there is some enemy entity in that building that he needs to destroy.

You know, he took his own life, I believe, in the stairwell, which makes me think he was trying to get to another floor, another location than he had landed on, on that particular floor. And time will tell, and we will know from his digital footprint and his writings and his rantings and interviews with his family, but something had gotten into his head that there was something in that building he needed to destroy.

Frankly, I think it's a miracle that it happened after hours because if it had happened between nine and five, the death toll could have been much, much worse.

COATES: It's so true to think about what could have been. We are still wondering, Chris, what the motive could possibly be. Not a justification, but a motive. Tell me how police are going to start to look for that considering the suspect is dead.

SWECKER: Yeah, there -- I mean, obviously, they're going to reconstruct his life. They're going to look at -- you know, talk to everybody that ever knew him. As was just mentioned, over the last five years, probably the most critical time period. You know, what cause did he latch onto? What grievance was -- what allowed him to drive across country and sustain that grievance, you know, across 20 hours plus of driving?

And I have to wonder, you know, just with my own experience, Blackstone is -- serves an iconic symbol of capitalism. It's a private equity company. They buy and sell companies. They, you know, deal in hundreds of billions of dollars in private equity.

[23:30:01]

I mean, they -- they literally are the big dog on the block when it comes to private equity and buying and selling companies. So, that -- I'm just on that (ph). I want to get in front of the investigation here. But there's that possibility because, you know, really -- read management. If you read up on that, I very much agree.

They're a property management company. They specialize in about 17 or 18 properties in the city. He would -- it doesn't seem like, unless he had a personal connection with one person, that he would have a grievance against the company itself. Blackstone is far more high profile. And so, of course, is the NFL. Maybe, you know, there's a specific beef there.

But, you know, as has been pointed out by several people already, our rational minds can't get around it. You know, mass shooters. People, when you're dealing with mental illness like this, you know, their minds can get around it. Look, Mangione traveled long ways to go kill a healthcare executive because he had a particular grievance against, you know, the healthcare industry in general.

And it'll come to light. I mean, I don't think it's going to take him very long to reconstruct his media -- you know, his social media presence, his postings, his writings, his rantings, as mentioned. You know, the people that he was close to and who he might have spoken to about these sorts of things. That picture is going to emerge pretty quickly.

COATES: You know, Kirk, on that -- on that very notion, I mean, this is -- I noticed at that press conference, might have missed some people. Alvin Bragg, the Manhattan D.A., top prosecutor in that city, was present at that press conference. Now, it could be a part of a show of force and, of course, one big law enforcement family.

On the other hand, there are going to be steps that are needed to peel back that curtain for the NYPD to really investigate subpoenas and affidavits and the like. How will the NYPD now approach this investigation? What are the first steps they've to take?

BURKHALTER: Well, to your first point, it's still too early to rule out the possibility. I'm not saying there is, but just the possibility that there may have been anyone else involved that somehow rendered any form of aid or knew this was going to happen to the point where they might incur criminal liability.

COATES: Uh-hmm.

BURKHALTER: So that's why you see so many prosecutors around. I think the first step for the police department would be to examine thoroughly all of his electronic devices, cell phones, computers, further -- social media, and what has been mentioned already, friends, associates, family, basically question and interview anyone that has had any contact with this person over that period of time.

Also consider, as has been mentioned, he drove over 2,500 miles. I mean, if you drove straight from Vegas to New York City, it would take you over 36 hours. Are you going to tell me he never spoke to anyone? He never stopped anywhere? He never contemplated or perhaps thought about these actions? So, who was he in contact with, perhaps, while he traveled? And did he speak to anyone before leaving, knowing that it's a one-way trip? Did he speak to anyone and indicate that?

COATES: Really important insight. Thank you so much, everyone. We're going to take a quick break. There is much more on the breaking news out of New York City, including what the city's elected officials are saying this very night.

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[23:35:00]

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COATES: The major breaking news tonight, four people shot and killed by a gunman in an office building right in the middle of New York City. The gunman is identified as 27-year-old Shane Devon Tamura. Officials revealing that he traveled from Las Vegas all the way to New York to commit this mass murder. But his motive is still unknown.

For more, let's go to CNN's Mark Morales, who's live on the scene. Mark, what do we know about how this attack played out?

MARK MORALES, CNN REPORTER: Well, investigators were able to look through surveillance footage, and that's where they saw the first image of the shooter getting out of his vehicle and walking into the lobby with the firearm in his hand.

He walks into that lobby and that's where law enforcement officials say he started spraying the lobby with bullets. He hit several civilians, and he also shot an NYPD officer.

He makes his way through the lobby, calls the elevator down, miraculously runs past, walks past a woman who he lets live, and he walks into that elevator that takes him all the way to the 33rd floor. He gets out of that elevator, he opens fire again, he strikes one more civilian before turning the rifle around and shooting himself in the chest, and that's where he was found. As we've said, investigators are still trying to figure out the motive. They're doing everything they can in terms of looking through surveillance video, talking to witnesses, talking to anybody that can help them piece together what that motive was.

While that's happening, the NYPD is left to pick up the pieces after one of their own was shot and killed. They identified the officer as 36-year-old Didarul Islam.

[23:40:01]

He's a young police officer. He has been on the job for three-and-a- half years. He's got two kids at home, and his wife is pregnant with his third child.

The police commissioner said at the news conference a short while ago, he made the ultimate sacrifice, shot in cold blood, wearing a uniform that stood for the promise that he made to this city. He died as he lived, a hero. Laura?

COATES: Well, of course, fidelis ad mortem. Mark Morales, thank you so much. New York City Mayor Eric Adams, a former officer himself, paying tribute to the officer that was killed tonight. Listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MAYOR ERIC ADAMS, NEW YORK CITY, NEW YORK: He served in the 47th precinct. was just 36 years old and a three-and-a-half-year veteran of the department. He was doing what he does best, protecting New Yorkers. He's an immigrant from Bangladesh, and he loved this city.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COATES: Other candidates for New York City mayor, they are also speaking out. The former governor, Andrew Cuomo, says that he is horrified by the shooting in Midtown. Curtis Sliwa expressing gratitude towards first responders who run toward danger to keep us safe. Zohran Mamdani saying he is heartbroken by the deadly rampage, saying that he is holding the victims, their families, and the NYPD officer in critical condition in his thoughts.

With me now, former mayor of New York, Bill de Blasio. Mayor, God, I cannot believe this has happened. What is your reaction to what has happened tonight?

BILL DE BLASIO, FORMER NEW YORK CITY MAYOR: Laura, I had to, way too many times, go to the hospital and meet the families of an officer that we lost. And this is the worst of all circumstances, when it's someone who's young and has a family, has a baby that will never know their father. It's just horrifying. And someone who, you know, was living the American dream.

And this is such a classic New York story of a young man who came here from Bangladesh and joined us in every way as new Yorkers, as Americans to protect his fellow citizens. And, you know, it's just horrifying. And the suddenness -- I mean, we're all going about our lives today.

COATES: Yeah.

DE BLASIO: And suddenly, work came around all over New York City, you know, active shooter situation. The other thing, you know, Laura, is that the first thing we all have to think about when you're a mayor or you're a police commissioner is, is this a lone wolf or is this part of something bigger that we have to address and we have to warn people about? Thank God, it appears, and certainly Commissioner Tisch said as quickly as she could, that there is not some larger conspiracy here.

COATES: Uh-hmm.

DE BLASIO: But the investigation now will go into, well, did anything else motivate him? Did anybody else aid him? Is there some bigger reality we need to know about that could tell us something to protect ourselves for the future? Or is this just some individual tragically troubled acting on his own demons?

COATES: It really -- the way you describe it, just thinking about the general fear people have and the worst-case scenario, their worst nightmare coming to life in their own buildings as well. And then I want you to listen to what witness, Jessica Chen, recounted about the terrifying moments that she endured during the deadly shooting.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JESSICA CHEN, MANHATTAN SHOOTING WITNESS (voice-over): We ran into the conference room and then, eventually, barricaded the tables across the doors and just stayed still. I think it was very, very apparent through all this that a lot of us were young, a lot of us went through training in elementary school of what to do in an active shooter situation. We were all unfortunately prepared.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COATES: That phrase, unfortunately prepared, is -- that will stick with me because this actually marks the 254th mass shooting in this country this year. This city in New York is home to around a million daily commuters, not to mention the New Yorkers who work in these buildings. How do they now feel secure even going to work tomorrow?

DE BLASIO: I think we should be honest, Laura, that people are feeling less and less secure in general --

COATES: Uh-hmm.

DE BLASIO: -- in our society. It's a very troubling time.

COATES: It is.

DE BLASIO: I mean, you have so many voices saying extreme and dangerous things that doesn't help on all sides. And then on top of it, just way too many weapons around and -- and very little that stops someone from getting a weapon. I mean, this is a deeply troubling situation. I keep wondering when it will be the incident that finally tells people we have to change something.

[23:45:01]

But what you read or what we heard there, you know, the idea that there's a whole generation that came up preparing for school shootings --

COATES: Yeah.

DE BLASIO: -- and now is experiencing office shootings. I mean, this -- this is not a sustainable way for our society to progress. What does it do to people's psyche? Those folks, not just in that building, everyone who goes into a building in Midtown tomorrow is going to be worried. They won't be able to help themselves. This is just not a way to live. We have to do something better as a society.

COATES: Well said. Mayor Bill de Blasio, thank you.

DE BLASIO: Thank you.

COATES: We have much more on the investigation still ahead, including the questions around the long gun the suspect used to carry out this deadly rampage. Stay with us.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[23:49:57]

COATES: The NYPD confirming tonight the gunman used an M4 assault- style rifle to shoot five people, killing four, including an NYPD officer.

For more, let's bring in CNN contributor and firearms reporter for the reload.com, Stephen Gutowski. He's also a gun safety instructor. Stephen, we meet again. Sadly, another mass shooting. This time in Manhattan. Talk to me about this weapon. How powerful --

STEPHEN GUTOWSKI, GUN SAFETY INSTRUCTOR AND FIREARMS REPORTER, THERELOAD.COM: Yeah.

COATES: -- is the M4 assault rifle the gunman used?

GUTOWSKI: Well, certainly, it's a very powerful weapon as any rifle that shoots .223-caliber like this one does. At least identified as an M4, it's technically more likely to be an AR-15 because it's not capable, most likely, of automatic fire, and is probably the civilian version, which is commonly available in most state though not in New York itself where it has been outlawed for quite a while.

COATES: Well, on that point, the idea of the type of what we mentioned, that the suspected gunman, he had a concealed carry license in Nevada. The NYPD commissioner also confirmed tonight he -- quote -- "has a documented mental health history." I know this type of weapon is not legal to have in or get in New York, but how difficult would it have been for him to obtain this kind of gun in other places given what they say was a documented mental health history?

GUTOWSKI: Yeah, that's a really good question. It depends on what kind of mental health issue he was dealing with and how serious, I guess, the actions of law enforcement or his family were when these issues were discovered because, for instance, if he was involuntarily committed or if he was adjudicated mentally ill by a judge, then he'd be what's called a prohibited person under federal law and he wouldn't be allowed to legally possess guns.

COATES: Uh-hmm.

GUTOWSKI: And as part of that process, he should have had his guns removed, though that doesn't always happen. And then additionally, in Nevada, they have a red flag law. So, even if he didn't have that more serious background of mental health, you know, adjudication, if they -- if you're showing signs of being a threat to himself or others, then police officers or family members could have used Nevada's red flag law to try and at least temporarily remove his guns. It's not clear. Obviously, we don't know if any of that happened.

COATES: How difficult is it to assemble this kind of gun and what might it say that he has in terms of level expertise in using firearms?

GUTOWSKI: Yeah, I mean, certainly, the fact that he had concealed carry license and he had, I guess, a private investigator license at one point as well, that indicates he probably was at least an intermediate shooter, like somebody who was pretty well familiar with firearms.

COATES: Is that required to get those licenses?

GUTOWSKI: Generally speaking, to get those, you do have to have some level of firearms training --

COATES: Okay.

GUTOWSKI: -- before you can obtain the license. So, yeah, he probably would have had at least some at least base level training and he probably would have had a pretty good understanding of firearms from at least the intermediate hobbyist level if he's got a license to carry.

And then, additionally, you know, the gun itself appears to be an AR- 15, which is the most popular rifle in the country. There are a handful of states that have them, unlike New York, but most states don't, and they are readily available if you don't have that disqualifying criminal or mental health record.

COATES: Stephen Gutowski, thank you so much for joining. We're going to come back with a tribute to a slain NYPD officer. His name, Didarul Islam.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[23:55:00] (COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COATES: Thank you so much for watching. And before we go, we want to remember the hero who died protecting New Yorkers, NYPD officer, father and husband and son, Didarul Islam.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

PATRICK HENDRY, HEAD, NEW YORK CITY POLICE UNION: We lost four people tonight. You know, our hero brother, who gave his life for this city, he was a hardworking police officer who was proud, we know, from hearing from his family, to put on that uniform and shields up, a New York City police officer, every day, and went out and did his job.

And he went out every single day to provide for his family, whether it was overtime or whatever he had to do to provide for this family. That's what he did on a daily basis. And his family is devastated. A wife losing a husband who provided for that family. A father who's not going to see his son again.

And hearts of every New York City police officer right now is hurting. We're hurting for our brother police officer who we lost.

TISCH: He was doing the job that we asked him to do. He put himself in harm's way. He made the ultimate sacrifice, shot in cold blood, wearing a uniform that stood for the promise that he made to this city. He died as he lived, a hero.