NFL

Sahel Kazemi Recently Purchased Gun, Police Tell Relative

Posted Jul 06, 2009 2:00PM By FanHouse Newswire (RSS feed)

Filed Under: Titans, NFL Police Blotter

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Steve McNair bodyNASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) -- Steve McNair's 20-year-old girlfriend bought a gun a couple of days before she was found dead alongside the slain former NFL quarterback, her relative said Monday.

Farzin Abdi said police told him about the gun purchase by his aunt Sahel Kazemi, who was raised with him like a sister. Kazemi and McNair were found dead on Saturday in a Nashville condominium leased by the former Titans star.

Abdi said police told him they are almost sure Kazemi was the shooter, but the 27-year-old nephew said he doesn't believe she would do it. Abdi didn't know what day of the week the gun was purchased or what type of gun it was.

"There was no way she was depressed and wanting to do this," he said. "She was so happy. ... She just had it made, you know, (with) this guy taking care of everything."

Nashville police didn't immediately have a response to Abdi's comments.

Abdi said Kazemi believed McNair was divorcing his wife and she was preparing to sell her furniture to move in with him.

Nashville courts had no record of a McNair divorce case, but a 14,000-square-foot home he owned in Nashville is on the market for $3 million.

Mechelle McNair has been described as very distraught about her husband's death and has not commented on it.

Before their deaths, the public knew nothing of Kazemi's relationship with McNair, a star who had earned the respect of his fellow NFL players for shaking off defenders and injuries and the love of fans amazed at how the quarterback kept showing up for work -- and winning.

Steve McNair Tragedy

    Sepide Salmani, left, 23, comforts Soheyla Kazemi Sunday, July 5, 2009 in Orange Park, Fla. as they talk about the death of Soheyla Kazemi's sister, Sahel Kazemi, 20, in Nashville, Tenn. Sahel Kazemi and former Tennessee Titans quarterback Steve McNair were found dead Saturday at a Nashville condominium that he rented with a friend. (AP Photo/The Florida Times-Union, Will Dickey)

    AP

    Soheyla Kazemi reacts at her home in Orange Park, Fla. Sunday, July 5, 2009 as she talks about the death of her sister, Sahel Kazemi, 20, in Nashville, Tenn. Sahel Kazemi and former Tennessee Titans quarterback Steve McNair were found dead Saturday at a Nashville condominium that he rented with a friend. (AP Photo/The Florida Times-Union, Will Dickey)

    AP

    People look over the condominium complex in Nashville, Tenn., Sunday, July 5, 2009, where Steve McNair was found dead Saturday, July 4. 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, according to police. (AP Photo/Mark Humphrey)

    AP

    A biohazard warning sign is posted on the door of the condominium in Nashville, Tenn., Sunday, July 5, 2009, where Steve McNair was found dead Saturday, July 4. 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, according to police. (AP Photo/Mark Humphrey)

    AP

    People look over the tributes and memorials left to Steve McNair at McNair's Gridiron 9 restaurant in Nashville, Tenn., Sunday, July 5, 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. (AP Photo/Mark Humphrey)

    AP

    Melanie Lewis writes a tribute to Steve McNair at McNair's Gridiron 9 restaurant in Nashville, Tenn., Sunday, July 5, 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. (AP Photo/Mark Humphrey)

    AP

    Jim Hardaway wears a Steve McNair jersey as he looks at the tributes left to McNair at McNair's Gridiron 9 restaurant in Nashville, Tenn., Sunday, July 5, 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. (AP Photo/Mark Humphrey)

    AP

    Police spokesman Don Aaron answers questions about the death of former NFL quarterback Steve McNair at a news conference in Nashville, Tenn., Sunday, July 5, 2009. McNair, a former 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 Nashville condominium July 4, according to police. (AP Photo/Mark Humphrey)

    AP

    Police spokesman Don Aaron answers questions about the death of former NFL quarterback Steve McNair at a news conference in Nashville, Tenn., Sunday, July 5, 2009. McNair, a former 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 Nashville condominium July 4, according to police. (AP Photo/Mark Humphrey)

    AP

    Police spokesman Don Aaron answers questions about the death of former NFL quarterback Steve McNair at a news conference in Nashville, Tenn., Sunday, July 5, 2009. McNair, a former 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 Nashville condominium July 4, according to police. (AP Photo/Mark Humphrey)

    AP


He endeared himself further with his charity work. Not just from the checks he handed out, but for throwing himself into the efforts, like he did when loading boxes onto tractor-trailers bound for Hurricane Katrina victims.

Publicly, McNair was a happily married man and proud father of four sons who split his time between his Mississippi farm and a home in Music City, where celebrities are cherished, not hassled.

His death, however, thrust a darker side of his private life into the spotlight.

"People have certain things that they do in life," said McNair's longtime friend Robert Gaddy, who called 911. "We don't need to look on the situation at this time (but) on the fact we just lost a great member of society."

Even McNair's longtime agent said he didn't know about the former quarterback's relationship with Kazemi.

"As good as he was on the football field, that couldn't touch the person," agent Bus Cook said Sunday, still shaken by McNair's death. "I mean it just couldn't."

Hints of a problem with alcohol surfaced in May 2003 when a Nashville police officer pulled McNair over on suspicion of drunk driving. Police said the quarterback's blood alcohol content was 0.18 percent -- well over Tennessee's legal limit. He also was charged with having a 9mm weapon with him, but all the charges were later dropped.

McNair was charged with drunken driving in 2007 because he let his brother-in-law drive his pickup truck. Those charges were later dropped when the DUI charge against the brother-in-law was reduced to reckless driving.

And McNair could have been charged again Thursday night when the same officer who arrested him in 2003 stopped a 2007 Cadillac Escalade driven by Kazemi and registered to both her and McNair. Kazemi was arrested on a DUI charge, and he was allowed to leave in a taxi.

Police labeled his death a homicide Sunday, revealing McNair had been shot four times -- twice in the head, twice in the chest -- when found in a rented condominium he shared with a longtime friend, Wayne Neeley. Police found a semiautomatic pistol under Kazemi's body.

But police spokesman Don Aaron said they were reviewing every possibility, interviewing friends of both and an ex-boyfriend before labeling Kazemi's death.

On the football field, he simply was "Air McNair," a winner.

McNair still holds the NCAA's Football Championship Series (formerly Division I-AA) records for career yards passing (14,496) and total offense (16,823) from his days at tiny Alcorn State in Mississippi.

Remembering Steve McNair

    Three-time Pro Bowl quarterback Steve McNair is remembered for being an incredibly hard worker, a dedicated teammate and a true NFL leader. Click through the gallery to recap McNair's memorable 13-year career.

    Ronen Zilberman, AP

    McNair signed a seven-year contract with the Houston Oilers after being selected third overall in the 1995 NFL Draft. As a prolific quarterback at Alcorn State, he shattered Division I-AA records, won the Walter Payton Award, and finished third in Heisman Trophy voting behind Rashaan Salaam and Ki-Jana Carter.

    Mark Phillips, AFP / Getty Images

    During his early NFL career, McNair remained a backup to Chris Chandler until starting a game in December 1996 against the Jaguars. In his first season as the Oilers' starter in 1997, he led the team to an 8-8 record, and his 2,665 passing yards were the most for the Oilers since Warren Moon in 1993. He also collected 674 yards on the ground, the third-highest total for a quarterback in NFL history.

    Pat Sullivan, AP

    McNair developed a special bond with his teammates as the franchise progressed and the team's name was changed to the Tennessee Titans. With emerging stars such as wide receiver Derrick Mason, pictured, McNair led the Titans to victory in seven of their last nine games during the 1999 season. Tennessee finished with a 13

    Elsa, Getty Images

    McNair and the Titans battled throughout the 1999 playoffs, including a shocking wild-card win over Buffalo on a play dubbed the "Music City Miracle." His most notable drive came in Super Bowl XXXIV, when he carried the Titans 87 yards in the final minute and 48 seconds, only to come up just shy when Kevin Dyson was tackled at the 1-yard-line. The Titans lost 23-16 in a heartbreaker.

    Morry Gash, AP

    Despite missing two games with an injured calf and ankle during the 2003 season, McNair finished with the best numbers of his career -- including 24 touchdown passes and a quarterback rating of 100.4. McNair and Peyton Manning were named co-NFL MVPs following the season. "I'm sharing it with Peyton Manning, I'm sharing it with a great guy," said McNair.

    John Russell, AP

    Titans head coach Jeff Fisher, left, told The Tennessean that he'll always remember McNair as one of his favorite players. "It is an extremely emotional moment and I don

    Mark Humphrey, AP

    McNair, referred to as a "warrior" by former teammate Al Del Greco, fought through numerous aches and pains during his career. He missed eight games in 2004 with a bruised sternum, but rebounded for a successful closing season with the Titans in 2005.

    Mark Humphrey, AP

    In June 2006, McNair's long stay with the Titans ended with a trade to Baltimore, where he played the final two seasons of his career. He led the Ravens to a 13-3 record and an AFC South championship in 2006 before faltering in 2007 due to back and shoulder injuries.

    Mark Humphrey, AP

    With both the Titans and Ravens, the respected veteran paved the way for young black quarterbacks such as Vince Young, right, and Troy Smith. "He taught me so much - not about the game, but about life, and I owe him a great deal," said Young.

    Andy Lyons, Getty Images


He played 13 NFL seasons, starting with the then-Houston Oilers, and led Tennessee to its famous last-second 2000 Super Bowl loss to the St. Louis Rams. He ended his career in Baltimore last season, after being traded away by the Titans after they drafted Vince Young as a replacement to the aching and expensive veteran.

McNair's friends want the quarterback to be remembered for his generosity. He gave away turkeys and checks in Tennessee, toys in Baltimore and paid for three football camps himself this year. Cook talked to someone Saturday who saw McNair cleaning up the field after one camp at Southern Mississippi.

"That was Steve McNair. That's who he is. And who he was," an emotional Cook recalled.

A viewing will be held Thursday at a Nashville funeral home, followed by another viewing at Mount Zion Baptist Church with a memorial service Thursday night. A funeral service will be held Saturday in Mississippi, but final details were not set.

McNair met Kazemi at the Dave & Buster's restaurant where she worked as a server and where his family ate often. The two began dating a few months ago in a relationship that included a vacation with parasailing. Photos posted on TMZ.com showed McNair gazing and smiling at the young Kazemi.

Copyright 2009 The Associated Press. The information contained in the AP news report may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or otherwise distributed without the prior written authority of The Associated Press. Active hyperlinks have been inserted by AOL.

Tags: Sahel+Kazemi, SahelKazemi, Steve+McNair, SteveMcnair

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