It’s all hands on deck New York Police Department as police work to catch suspect in deadly shooting UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson.
The suspect has so far eluded the New York Police Department, but detectives have managed to establish a rough timeline of events.
Here’s what we know so far.
Brian Thompson, a Minnesota residentwas in New York for an investors conference, the New York Police Department said at a news conference Wednesday. The investor conference was scheduled to begin at 8 a.m. Eastern Time.
According to detectives, the shooter arrived at the scene, in front of the Hilton Hotel at 1335 Avenue of the Americas, on foot about five minutes before Thompson, who was staying at another hotel across the street.
New York City Police Commissioner Jessica Tisch said this “does not appear to be a random act of violence.”
“The victim was in New York to speak at an investors conference. It appears a suspect was waiting for several minutes,” Tisch said.
Based on video footage from the area, police discovered that at 6:44 a.m., Thompson was walking toward the Hilton Hotel from his hotel.
“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,” New York Police Chief of Detectives Joe Kenny told reporters Wednesday, just hours after the shooting .
Police said the shooter’s gun was malfunctioning. He cleared the jam and fired again. Tisch said the suspect shot Thompson at least twice – once in the back and once in the right calf.
Kenny said that could indicate the shooter was proficient in handling firearms.
At 6:46 a.m., patrol officers responded to a 911 call about a person shot in front of the Hilton Hotel. Two minutes later, they found Thompson, 50, lying on the sidewalk with gunshot wounds to his back and leg.
Thompson was taken to Roosevelt Hospital, where he was pronounced dead at 7:12 a.m., the New York Police Department said.
Kenny said the shooter “appears to be a light-skinned male.”
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In video evidence collected by police, he can be seen wearing a light brown or cream-colored jacket, a black mask, black and white sneakers and “a very distinctive gray backpack.”
After shooting Thompson, police said the shooter fled on foot north into an alley between 54th Street and 55th Street.
Once he arrived at West 55th Street, the shooter continued walking west on Avenue of the Americas, where he got on an electric city bike and rode north on Avenue of the Americas toward Central Park. .
The last police visual of the shooter was at 6:48 a.m., where he was seen riding his bicycle in Central Park at Center Drive.
New York Police posted an image they said he was a “person of interest wanted for questioning” Thursday.
This image provided by the New York City Police Department shows a man wanted for questioning in connection with the investigation into the murder of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson outside a Manhattan hotel on Wednesday, December 4 2024. (New York City Police Department via AP).
“Right now, all indications are that this was a premeditated, planned and targeted attack,” Tisch said.
Kenny said: “Based on the evidence we have so far, it appears the victim was specifically targeted. But at this point we don’t know why. »
Police could not confirm whether any words were exchanged before the shooting because the video did not contain any audio.
New York police are speaking with Thompson’s co-workers and family members, scanning social media accounts for specific threats made against him and reaching out to law enforcement in Minnesota.
Several American media police sources cited claiming that the shell casings from the attack had the words “deny”, “defend” and “drop” written on them.
The Associated Press cited a law enforcement official in his report of these details. CBS News cited law enforcement officials, ABC News police sources cited and NBC News cited “A senior New York City law enforcement official has been briefed on the investigation.”
Global News has not independently confirmed this information.
These US reports cite sources suggesting that these words could be a potential reference to tactics that critics of insurance companies use to avoid paying claims, and could suggest a potential motive – although the police have not yet present makes no comment on any potential motivation.
Where is the investigation?
Police said they were working with the bike rental company to trace the bike’s GPS. They are also trying to track down a witness who was standing next to Thompson when he was shot.
Kenny said a cell phone was recovered in the alley, which they will examine forensically to determine if it is related to the shooting.
Police officers, in uniform and in plain clothes, will be deployed throughout the city.
Tisch said they increased the suspect’s reward to $10,000 and asked the public to forward any information they may have to NYPD Crime Stoppers by calling 800-577-TIPS.
What are the reactions so far?
Social media users reacted to the killing, with the term “CEO” trending on social media site X.
Steven Downing, an associate professor of criminology and media at Ontario Tech University, said some messages were celebratory in nature.
“I have seen very few messages of sympathy for the victim,” he said. “Certainly we see anti-elitist sentiment here.”
Downing said that while this is a tragedy for those who knew Thompson, the social media reaction indicates broader anti-elite social sentiment.
He said there were also messages “promoting” the shooter.
“I saw a tweet specifically mentioning Robin Hood. The parallels are not exact, but there is an element of class built into it, like an us versus them confrontation,” he said.
Downing said this could reflect people’s frustration with the health insurance industry in the United States. A thread on a Reddit community, inviting people to share their worst experiences with UnitedHealthcare, attracted hundreds of comments, mostly negative, and more than a thousand upvotes.
“There seems to be some effect here when people share their own narratives,” Downing said. “People bond strangely over it.”