Brother of former NFL star Pat Tillman crashes car into SJ post office: officials
Brother of late NFL star Pat Tillman accused of crashing car into SJ post office
U.S. postal inspectors and San Jose Fire Dept. investigators on Monday continued searching for a motive to what they said was an intentional crash and fire by Richard Tillman, the brother of former NFL star Pat Tillman who died in 2002 due to friendly fire in Afghanistan. The Tillman family issued a statement saying Richard has battled mental health issues for many years.
SAN JOSE, Calif. - San Jose fire investigators on Monday inspected the exterior of the heavily-damaged Almaden Valley post office.
Was it intentional?
What we know:
"We're not allowed to say anything," said one of the three, as they crouched under yellow police caution tape that was strewn around the building in the 6500 block of Crown Blvd. in the Almaden Valley section of San Jose.
The U.S. postal inspector was talking though and said there's evidence that the car crash and subsequent fire were intentional acts.
"Occasionally, cars crash into buildings and this doesn't happen. So, everything is to be determined still," said Matt Norfleet. "But certainly, there's enough to make us think this might have been intentional."
PO Box inconvenience
What they're saying:
Most of the damage is in the front of the building where Post Office boxes are located. Customers are now scrambling to make use of an alternate site starting Tuesday, which is five-miles-away in the 1700 block of Meridian Ave., in the Willow Glen section of the city.
"A lot of the surrounding neighbors have post office boxes here. And they were worried about their checks if they are landlords. Or their correspondence, what was going on," said Richard, an Almaden Valley resident impacted by the fire. He did not give his last name.
Added Russell, another resident, who did not give their last name, "I know that I'm going to be receiving some important stuff soon. So there's obviously concern with that."
Connection to Pat Tillman
San Jose police officers arrested the driver of the car around 3 a.m. Sunday. He's identified as Richard Tillman.
"My understanding is that Richard is Pat's brother. This family has been through a lot. Pat is not only a local hero but a national example of sacrifice for the greater good," Mayor Matt Mahan, (D) San Jose, said while appearing on "Mornings On 2."
Officials said the 44-year-old is the younger brother of Pat Tillman, a former NFL star for the Arizona Cardinals who left the league in 2002 and joined the Army during the post-9/11 surge of patriotism. The older Tillman was killed in action by friendly fire.
There was a public memorial for Pat Tillman in 2004 at San Jose's Municipal Rose Garden. In a video from the event that was posted on the YouTube platform, Richard is seen choking back tears while eulogizing him.
"Yeah, I'm not just gonna sit up here and breakdown on you, but ah..Thank you for coming. Pat's a...champion. And always will be," Richard Tillman, wearing a T-shirt and holding a beer, said at the time.
Investigators don't know why Tillman allegedly drove his car deep into the building, causing a fire that did serious damage to the structure.
"Why this post office? I'm telling you there's no way this is a rational act. It's never going to make sense to attack a post office like this, for any reason," said Norfleet.
In a text statement to KTVU, Kevin Tillman wrote in part, "It's no secret that Richard has been battling severe mental health issues for many years...Unfortunately, securing the proper care and support for him has proven incredibly difficult — or rather, impossible. As a result, none of this is as shocking as it should be."
Residents impacted by the fire at the Almaden Valley post office can begin picking up mail at the Willow Glen location beginning Tuesday, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.
Jesse Gary is a reporter based in the station's South Bay Bureau. Follow him on the Instagram platform, @jessegontv and on Facebook, @JesseKTVU.
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