One investigation of the autopsy report and photographs by two forensic pathologists in November 2006, concluded that Tillman was most likely killed as a result of fire from a M249 light machine gun, previously designated the M249 Squad Automatic Weapon (SAW). The M249 uses the same ammunition as the M16 but is capable of a substantially higher rate of fire. The higher rate of fire would have allowed for a competent user to place three bullets within a several-inch target from forty or fifty yards away, even from a moving vehicle.[31]
On July 26, 2007, Chris Matthews reported on Hardball that Tillman's death may have been a case of fragging - specifically that the bullet holes were tight and neat, suggesting a shot at close range. Matthews based his speculation on a report from the doctors who examined Tillman's body. The following day the Associated Press reported that a doctor who examined Tillman's body after his death wrote, "The medical evidence did not match up with the scenario as described,"[32] also noting that the wound entrances appeared as though he had been shot with an M16 rifle from fewer than 10 yards (9 m) away. A possible motive, however, has never been identified. According to one of his fellow soldiers, Tillman "was popular among his fellow soldiers and had no enemies."[33]
