Former NFL professional player Philip Adams killed five people including a prominent doctor in South Carolina including himself early Thursday, according to Associated Press who was briefed on the investigation.
According to reports, Adams’ parents live near the doctor’s home in Rock Hill, and that he had been treated by the doctor. The source said Phillips killed himself after midnight with a .45 caliber weapon.
The York County Sheriff’s Office said they had searched for hours before finding Adams in a nearby home.
The York County coroner’s office said 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.
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 deputies were called around 4:45 p.m. Wednesday to the Lesslies’ residence in the Rock Hill area, 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.
The investigation is ongoing, he said.
“Dr. Lesslie was my doctor growing up,” The Sheriff 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.”
A biography page of Dr. Lesslie said he and his wife of 35 years raised four children. He had been practicing medicine 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, North Carolina.
Rock Hill is a city in northernmost South Carolina about 25 miles (40 kilometers) southwest of Charlotte, North Carolina.
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