US police searching for the man who shot dead United Healthcare CEO Brian Thompson on a New York street found money from the board game Monopoly in a backpack they think the shooter used.
Two informed sources told NBC News, Sky News’ US partner, that the counterfeit banknotes were discovered in the bag police found in Central Park after Mr. Thompson was killed Wednesday.
Police still have no idea the shooter’s name, whereabouts or motive for his killing, but they believe the man likely took a bus out of New York shortly after the brazen ambush .
Brian Thompson was shot dead in New York. Photo: AP
Friday, detectives found the backpack in the parkbut no weapons were recovered or during other searches by agents, two senior law enforcement officials close to the investigation told NBC News.
Their investigations, however, remain ongoing and fluid, they said.
Other sources familiar with the matter told NBC that a jacket was found inside the bag, but it’s unclear if it’s the one he was wearing at the time of the shooting.
A New York City police officer searches Central Park. Photo: AP
NYPD officers returned to Central Park to search near where the backpack was found as well as in wooded areas and fountain areas for other evidence, according to three sources who spoke to NBC.
Atlanta, from where the shooter traveled to New York by bus, is one focus of the investigation, with detectives seeking video from that bus station and others along the Greyhound bus line, three sources close to the investigation told NBC.
Mr. Thompson, head of the largest health insurer in the United States, was shot dead outside his company’s annual investor meeting at a hotel near Radio City Music Hall and Rockefeller Center in downtown Manhattan.
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Health boss shot dead
The attacker was filmed walking behind Mr Thompson and opening fire outside the Hilton Hotel. Photo: NYPD
A video found by detectives shows the man riding his bike in the park, then taking a taxi to a bus station from where he could travel to New Jersey, Philadelphia, Boston and Washington D.C., according to the the city’s chief of detectives, Joseph Kenny.
Learn more:
New clues in the search for the shooter
Backpack found during search for New York shooter
The shooter was filmed moments before the shooting
Otherwise, the shooter hid his identity with a mask for most of his time in the city, including during the attack and even while eating.
On Friday, the FBI announced it was offering a $50,000 (£39,100) reward for information leading to an arrest and conviction.