SACRAMENTO, Calif. — A former Boise State football player was shot and killed early Monday in a shooting near a downtown Sacramento nightclub that left four other men wounded, according to police.
The shooting occurred just before 2 a.m., and family members identified the man killed as 31-year-old Greg Najee Grimes, KCRA-TV reported.
Meanwhile, Sacramento police are asking anyone with video evidence of the shooting to submit it using a QR code.
“So we are asking for the public’s assistance in this investigation. We are speaking to witnesses who are providing information to the police department that but seeking the public’s help in trying to solve this crime and bring justice to the victims,” Sacramento Chief of Police Kathy Lester told KCRA.
Grimes was rushed to an area hospital for treatment, but efforts to save his life were unsuccessful, the Idaho Statesman reported.
“We want people to know what many have lost today. A friend, a coach, a teacher, a grandson, a nephew, a cousin, a son and most importantly and father,” Grimes’ family said in a prepared statement, obtained by KCRA.
The four other men wounded in the shooting were listed in stable condition Monday night, the TV station reported.
According to the Statesman, Grimes was a defensive tackle at Boise State from 2009 to 2012, a period in which the Broncos went 49-4 and beat Texas Christian University in the 2010 Fiesta Bowl.
“I, and the entire Boise State football family, are saddened to learn about the passing of Greg Grimes,” Boise State head coach Andy Avalos said in a prepared statement issued Monday.
Grimes’ senior season was Avalos’ first with the Broncos as defensive line coach, the newspaper reported.
“He was a member of the brotherhood who is gone way too soon. He will be missed,” Avalos said.
Grimes’ family confirmed to KCRA that he attended Inderkum High School in Sacramento’s Natomas area.
According to The Sacramento Bee, Grimes was the first athlete from Inderkum High School to earn a college scholarship in any sport.
After his playing career ended, Grimes returned to his alma mater to coach football and work with special-education students, until last December, when he left to begin his own staffing firm, the newspaper reported.
The Natomas Unified School District issued the following statement:
“We are saddened by the news of the passing of Greg Grimes. Our heartfelt thoughts are with his family and friends, and all the individuals he connected with through his work at Inderkum High School.”
Grimes leaves behind a 4-year-old son, Jaceyon, the Statesman reported.