(CelebNMusic247-News) NFL’s Paul Oliver Takes His Own Life Amid Money Woes:
Former San Diego Chargers Paul Oliver showed up for a Labor Day family cookout with bags full of groceries Burgers, Ribs, and Chicken Enough food for at least 20 and then ended it all.
“Paul was a giver,” said David Scandrett, Oliver’s uncle. “He helped his mom with his NFL money. He helped his whole family.”
Here’s the drop:
Oliver, a defensive back who last played in 2011 with the San Diego Chargers, had been bugging his uncle and other family members to throw the cookout, Scandrett said. They feasted and played cards, and Oliver took one of his sons into the cul de sac to play with a big red rubber ball.
Oliver was among the first to leave, telling his uncle he had to go pick up a Chevy Tahoe he had just purchased for his wife.
“I didn’t think that would be the last time I would ever see him,” Scandrett said.
Three weeks later, Oliver was dead at age 29. The Cobb County medical examiner’s office confirmed that Oliver died Sept. 24 from a self-inflicted gunshot wound, but has yet to release its official report.
According to a police report obtained Thursday by USA TODAY Sports, Oliver’s wife,Chelsea, said she and her husband had been struggling with marital issues and that he had “started mentioning divorce.” After his football career ended, the report said, Oliver had been “somewhat depressed over being released. … He made statements in the past about wanting to end his life.”
Chelsea Oliver said she and the couple’s two sons, ages 2 and 11 months, witnessed the shooting, which occurred during an argument after her husband had been drinking alcohol, according to the report. She told police Paul Oliver ran upstairs to get a handgun, stood at the top of the staircase and fired a round into the ceiling. She said he removed the magazine from the gun and appeared to insert another one. He began walking down the stairs, put the gun to his head and fired again, the report said.
“She kept saying she could not believe he did this in front of his sons,” the report said.
Paul Oliver’s body was found at the bottom of the stairs, and the damage to the upstairs ceiling and wall along the stairwell were consistent with Chelsea Oliver’s account, the report said.
But Scandrett says he does not believe Oliver intended to kill himself.
“True enough it was self-inflicted,” said Scandrett, who said he arrived at Oliver’s home about 30 minutes after the shooting. “I don’t think he knew the gun. When you fire a round, the clip throws another round right into the chamber. When you take the clip out, you might think you are emptying the gun, but you’re not. It was an automatic. He was trying to scare her.” They were having an argument, but I’m not sure what it was about.
“Maybe depression set in, I don’t know. He was playing ball, then he is like a stay-at-home mom,” Scandrett said.
The police report said authorities recovered a Glock .40-caliber handgun with a magazine inserted that contained 12 rounds of ammunition. Another magazine was found containing 15 rounds.
Oliver’s brothers and wife either declined comment or did not return messages.
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