UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson fatally shot outside New York hotel

NEW YORK, NY – The New York City Police Department asked for the public’s help in apprehending the unidentified gunman who allegedly fatally shot UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson outside the Hilton Hotel in Midtown Manhattan early Wednesday morning, calling what investigators considered a “premeditated attack and planned.

The Hilton Hotel hosted the UnitedHealthcare annual investor meeting, and police said Thompson had been in town from Minnesota since Monday and was staying across the street.

“It appears the suspect had been waiting for several minutes and, as she walked toward the conference hotel, the suspect approached from behind and fired several rounds, hitting the victim at least once in the back and at least once in the right calf,” New York Police Commissioner Jessica Tisch said at a news conference. “Numerous people encountered the suspect, but he appeared to be waiting for his target. The suspect fled first on foot, then by e-bike, and was last seen in Central Park on Center Drive.”

The shooting occurred as tourists flocked to Rockefeller Center’s annual Christmas tree lighting, which will take place a few blocks from the scene later Wednesday evening.

A manhunt is underway as the suspect is still at large.

“I want to be clear at this point, all indications are that this was a premeditated, planned and targeted attack,” Tisch said. “Millions of people will enjoy the tree lighting tonight, among other holiday events, and the NYPD will be right there with them to keep them safe.”

HACKERS BEHIND UNITEDHEALTH GROUP’S CYBERATTACK WILL BE IDENTIFIED

Thompson is survived by his wife Paulette “Pauley” Thompson, 51, and their two children. They lived together in the family’s $1.5 million home in Maple Grove, Minnesota, according to the Daily Mail.

NYPD Chief of Detectives Joseph Kenny said investigators were contacting Minnesota law enforcement, as well as Thompson’s co-workers and family members “to see if there had been any specific threats against him in the past.

Reached by NBC News, Thompson’s wife confirmed that her husband had been threatened, but said she did not know the details.

Surveillance footage released by the New York Police Department shows the alleged suspect wanted in the shooting death of UnitedHealth CEO Brian Thompson in Midtown Manhattan on Wednesday, December 4, 2024. (NYPD)

“There have been threats,” Paulette Thompson told NBC News in a phone call. “Basically, I don’t know, a lack of media coverage? I don’t know the details. I just know he said some people were threatening him.”

Police were executing a search warrant at Thompson’s hotel room to investigate further, Kenny said.

UnitedHealth Group released a statement confirming Thompson’s death.

“We are deeply saddened and shocked by the passing of our dear friend and colleague Brian Thompson, CEO of UnitedHealthcare. Brian was a highly respected colleague and friend to all who worked with him. We work closely with the Department of NYPD and ask for your patience and understanding during this difficult time. Our thoughts are with Brian’s family and all his loved ones.

The NYPD is offering a $10,000 reward for information leading to an arrest. Two surveillance photos released by the department show the attacker with a hooded sweatshirt hiding his face, pointing a gun in front of the hotel then fleeing on an electric bike.

Kenny described the shooter as “a light-skinned man” wearing a “light brown, cream-colored wool jacket, a black mask, black and white sneakers and a very distinctive gray backpack.”

“The shooter walks on the sidewalk behind a car. He ignores numerous other pedestrians, approaches the victim from behind and shoots him in the back,” the chief of detectives said. “The shooter then walks toward the victim and continues shooting. It appears the gun is malfunctioning as he clears the jam and begins shooting again.”

Surveillance footage shows the alleged suspect wanted in the shooting death of UnitedHealth CEO Brian Thompson in Midtown Manhattan fleeing the scene on a bicycle on Wednesday, December 4, 2024. (NYPD)

“The motive for this murder is currently unknown, but based on the evidence we have so far, it appears that the victim was specifically targeted. But at this point, we do not know why. This does not appear to be a random act of violence,” he added.

Mayor Eric Adams also assured New Yorkers, including business leaders, that the NYPD was “on the job” because the Thompson shooting was not a random act of violence.

Sources previously told Fox News that Thompson was shot in the chest and leg shortly before his UnitedHealthcare annual investors meeting.

The sources said the shooting was not a random incident.

Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, a former Democratic vice presidential candidate, responded to news of Thompson’s killing, denouncing the shooting as “horrible news and a terrible loss for business and health care.” of Minnesota,” according to the New York Times.

GRAPHIC WARNING:

Earlier, before identifying Thompson as the victim, New York police told Fox News Digital that a 50-year-old man was shot in the chest outside the Hilton Hotel on 6th Avenue around 6:46 a.m. and had been transported to Mount Sinai West. to the hospital, where he was pronounced dead. No arrests have been made and the investigation is ongoing, a police spokesperson said.

News cameras captured video of NYPD officers working to resuscitate Thompson on the sidewalk outside the Hilton before he was taken to a hospital.

Several witnesses told FOX 5 New York that the suspect appeared to have been waiting, potentially overnight, outside the hotel, possibly targeting the victim.

UnitedHealthcare CEO shot and killed in New York, sources say. (Fox News Digital/UnitedHealthcare/Fox News)

The New York Post first identified Thompson as the shooting victim.

Thompson’s sister, Elena Reveiz, told the Times in a telephone interview that she was still learning that her brother had been killed.

“He was a good person and I’m so sad,” Reveiz reportedly said, adding that Thompson was a loving father to his two children.

According to ABC News, police say the shooter was wearing a ski mask.

At the news conference, the chief of detectives said the shooter fled on foot northbound down an alley between 54th and 55th streets.

Once he arrived at West 55th St., the shooter continued walking west on Avenue of the Americas, “where he mounted an electric city bike and rode north on Avenue of the Americas toward Central Park, where at 6:48 a.m. we have the shooter driving this bike into Central Park at Center Drive,” Kenny said.

A spokesperson for Lyft, which owns Citi Bike, told Fox News Digital: “We stand ready to assist law enforcement in this investigation.”

Kenny told reporters a cell phone was recovered in the alley and was still being examined by medical examiners.

THE the suspect is described as a skinny man, about 6 feet 1 inch tall and dressed in black, according to ABC News.

This 2017 file photo of Brian Thompson was published via Businesswire when he was named CEO of UnitedHealthcare Unit in 2017. (Businesswire/Fox News)

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UnitedHealth Group – the parent company of UnitedHealthcare – is the largest health insurance company by market share, according to the American Medical Association.

Eric Revell of Fox News contributed to this report.