Shaquille O’Neal Donates $50K DJ Fee to Buffalo Shooting Victim’s Family

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Long known as one of the most generous and charitable athletes in sports, Basketball Hall of Famer Shaquille O’Neal spread his wealth once again this week.

According to TMZ Sports, Shaq donated the $50,000 he earned from a DJ gig in Buffalo, New York, to the family of one of the victims of the May 14 mass shooting at a Buffalo grocery store.

O’Neal performed in downtown Buffalo on Friday night under the name DJ Diesel as part of Shaq’s Bass All-Stars.

While in Buffalo, Shaq spoke to the family of Aaron Salter Jr., who was a retired police officer doing security work at Tops Friendly Markets at the time of last month’s shooting.

Salter reportedly engaged with and shot the gunman when he entered the store, but the bullets didn’t pierce the gunman’s body armor, allowing him to shoot and kill Salter.

Salter was one of 13 people shot by alleged gunman Payton Gendron. Ten of them died, and all of the deceased were Black, essentially confirming the notion that it was a racist hate crime.

O’Neal’s respect for Salter is not unexpected given that Shaq has a background in law enforcement.

The four-time NBA champion and three-time Finals MVP was a reserve officer for part of his time with the Los Angeles Lakers and served in similar roles in Florida, Arizona and Virginia as well.

This week marked the latest in a long line of charitable endeavors for O’Neal, especially in relation to the victims of gun violence.

Three years ago, Shaq donated a house in the Atlanta area to the family of a 12-year-old boy who was shot and left paralyzed.