A relative of the woman found shot to death with Steve McNair(notes) says Nashville police told him she recently purchased a gun.
Farzin Abdi is Sahel Kazemi’s nephew, but the two were raised together like brother and sister. Abdi says he does not believe Kazemi would have killed the former Tennessee Titans quarterback and herself.
The two were found dead on Saturday in a condominium owned by McNair.
Abdi says police told him they are almost sure the 20-year-old Kazemi was the shooter, but he says she had no motive.
Nashville police didn’t immediately have a reaction to Abdi’s comments.
Abdi says Kazemi believed McNair was divorcing his wife and she was preparing to sell her furniture to move in with him.
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Re:So sad....
Date: 2009/07/07 21:31
By: KatiePery
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Tennessee’s state medical examiner said Tuesday that investigators have been hesitant to conclude that Steve McNair’s(notes) girlfriend killed the NFL star and herself because she didn’t appear to have a motive, but that murder-suicide is the most likely scenario.
After the couple was discovered shot to death on Saturday, police were quick to label McNair’s death a homicide. He had been shot twice in the head and twice in the chest, while 20-year-old Sahel Kazemi was dead from a single gunshot to the head. Under her body was a gun she had purchased less than two days before the killings.
Investigators were waiting on ballistics tests on the weapon before issuing a ruling on Kazemi’s death, which medical examiner Bruce Levy said could come in the next few days. Kazemi’s gun purchase, which was revealed on Monday, is a strong indication that she was responsible, he said.
“If we had known on Sunday about the gun I think we would have been very comfortable in ruling murder-suicide,†he said. “I’ll be very surprised now if they rule it isn’t.â€
Levy said an apparent lack of motive by Kazemi has made investigators careful about exploring every possibility, including the unlikely scenario that a third party could have staged the scene. Their relationship lacked typical indicators of trouble—such as concerned family members or police reports and protection orders.
“The thing we always hear is, ‘We should have seen this coming,â€â€™ he said.
But Kazemi’s family has said she was very happy. Former Tennessee Titans offensive tackle Brad Hopkins(notes) listens as head coach Jeff Fisher talks about former Titans quarterback Steve McNair(notes) during a news conference in Nashville, Tenn., Monday, July 6, 2009. McNair, a former NFL quarterback with the Houston Oilers, Tennessee Titans and Baltimore Ravens, was found dead of gunshot wounds along with a 20-year-old woman in a downtown Nashville condominium July 4, according to police. Former Tennessee Titans offens… AP - Jul 6, 4:56 pm EDT
“She just had it made, you know, (with) this guy taking care of everything,†Kazemi’s nephew Farzin Abdi said on Monday.
Levy said the 36-year-old McNair was shot in each temple and twice in the chest. Three of the shots were taken from a distance, but one of the shots to the temple came from just inches away.
The gun that killed Kazemi was in contact with her head when it discharged, he said.
Police spokesman Don Aaron said Monday McNair wasn’t with Kazemi when she bought the semiautomatic pistol that was found at the scene. Police have declined to release the caliber of the gun or the name of the person who sold it to her.
Aaron said the case may not be as neatly resolved as people would like.
“It may be we’ll never know exactly why this happened,†he said.
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