New footage shows Brian Thompson’s masked killer dropping an object into a pile of trash as he headed to assassinate the CEO of UnitedHealthcare.
Thompson, 50, was gunned down in the early hours of Wednesday as he was on his way to an investor conference at the New York Hilton. His unidentified assassin remains on the loose but cops have released a photo of him smiling and have searched a Manhattan hostel where he’s believed to have stayed.
The search for Thompson‘s killer has entered its third day, as the NYPD continues to hunt for a mystery man who executed top executive.
‘Start with the inner circle,’ Duffey told Fox News.
At the time of the killing, Thompson and his estranged wife Paulette had been living in separate homes that are less than a mile apart in suburban Maple Grove, Minnesota.
His wife Paulette, a practicing physical therapist, disclosed that her husband had previously received threats. She referenced a ‘lack of coverage.’
Suspect dropped an object on trash bags before killing, new footage shows
Brian Thompson’s assassin appears to have dropped an object into trash bags just before he shot the CEO dead, Newsweek reported.
CCTV footage shows the suspect stopping before a pile of white plastic trash bags before he places something on top before he keeps walking.
The suspect was seen about 10 minutes later walking by a parking lot one street away, which suggests there was a delay between getting from 55th to arriving at 54th street as he moved towards the Hilton hotel, where he shot Thomson dead.
More health insurers taking precautions after CEO’s killing
Medica, a Minnesota-based nonprofit health care firm that serves 1.5 million customers in 12 states, said it’s temporarily closing all six locations.
Meanwhile health insurance provided Centene Corp said its investors meeting this year will now be virtual.
The insurer cited the fatal shooting in its announcement about the December 2 event.
Hostel employee ‘asked to see suspect’s pretty smile’
A worker at the hostel where police believe the killer was staying said he removed his mask after she asked to ‘see his pretty smile,’ a high-ranking source told CBS News.
Thst’s when surveillance footage captured his face, as the suspect had apparently remained masked for most of his time in NYC.
Online sleuths doubt images of suspect
Online commenters were quick to point out discrepancies between the images of the suspect released by police and claimed the differences suggest they show two different people.
NYC mayor says NYPD on ‘the right road’
Eric Adams provided no new information on investigation’s progress during interviews Friday.
But he said that he’s confident police will arrest the shooter.
‘We are on the right road to apprehend him and bring him to justice,’ Adams said on TV station WPIX.
How much do top companies spend to protect their executives?
Many of the biggest U.S. companies, particularly those in the tech sector, spend heavily on personal and residential security for their top executives.
Alan Dershowitz’s theory on motive Behind CEO’s murder
Dershowitz appeared on Fox News on Thursday and offered his theory on the motive behind Thompson’s murder.
The lawyer mentioned a Department of Justice’s probe into UnitedHealthcare which focues on whether the company was using unfair practices to monopolize the market.
Thompson was also accused of insider trading after he sold stocks to the company when he learned of the DoJ probe.
‘And if he was being investigated, there were people out there who would be afraid [that] he would flip and turn against them,’ Dershowitz said.
‘And so I think they have to investigate the possibility that somebody who he might have testified against had him killed to prevent him from being from testifying.
‘Also, whoever killed him knew where he was going, knew he was going at six forty in the morning. Knew it was well before the events began.
‘So I think the investigation has to look inward to the company to see who was under investigation and who this guy might have flipped against.’
UnitedHealthcare disables social media comments as disgruntled patients flood sites
UnitedHealthcare has disabled social media comments on its profiles after disgruntled patients began flooding the company with complaints following the assassination of its CEO.
The health insurer has been deluged by comments, many from people who say their or their loved ones claims have been denied. Its most recent Instagram posts announcing the death of Thompson let users like or share the post, but not comment on it.
Chilling prediction about Brian Thompson assassin’s identity amid fears of copycat killings
A former FBI chief has revealed he does not believe that Brian Thompson’s assassin was a hitman but he was clearly a ‘proficient’ marksman.
Robert D’Amico said the UnitedHeathcare CEO’s killer made some crucial errors which mark him out as an amateur, including a visiting a nearby Starbucks prior to the slaying.
Cops test DNA and fingerprints on discarded bottle possibly dropped by killer
Police said Thursday they found a water bottle and protein bar wrapper from a trash can near the scene of the ambush and think the suspect bought them from a Starbucks minutes before the shooting. The items were being tested by the city’s medical examiner.
Social media users express outrage at those celebrating CEO’s murder
Insurer websites wipe the names of their execs after Thompson’s murder
UnitedHealthcare and several of its competitoirs have erased the leadership pages from their websites.
UnitedHealthcare’s About Us page has been redirecting to the homepage since Thursday, 404 Media reported.
The page used to take users to Thompson’s bio alongside bios for each of its top executives.
Anthem Blue Cross Blue Shield and Medica have also removed their About Us pages.
Author Jay Feinman refuses to address ‘deny, defend, depose’ message found on UnitedHealthcare CEO killer’s bullets
Sick tribute at site of Brian Thompson’s death
A balloon with a sign taped to it reading ‘CEO DOWN’ over the image of a smiling star and party poppers was found outside the Hilton Hotel in Midtown Manhattan after Thompson, 50, was gunned down there Wednesday morning.
Chilling actions of UnitedHealthcare CEO gunman revealed by witness
Cops storm train in hunt for UnitedHealthcare CEO’s assassin
The NYPD said late on Thursday afternoon that it scoured a Long Island Rail Road train the day prior after receiving a tip that Brian Thompson’s assassin was on board.
The tip turned out to be a dead-end, however law enforcement officials urged the public to continue offering tips to aid their ongoing manhunt.
A police spokesperson said: ‘The train stopped. They searched the train and nothing was found.’
Ex-Washington Post journalist doubles down on controversial comments about CEO’s murder
Taylor Lorenz has doubled down on her unsympathetic comments she made about the death of UnitedHeath’s CEO, but clarified that she does not condone murder.
Lorenz has since defended her sentiment in an interview with TMZ amid the backlash, telling critics it’s important to consider context.
Who was Brian Thompson?
Thompson was the chief executive of UnitedHealthcare, the insurance wing of parent company UnitedHealth Group Inc.
He had worked at the Minnetonka, Minnesota-based company for two decades and led its insurance division since 2021. He was one of the company’s highest-paid executives, with a $10.2 million annual compensation package.
Thompson kept a low profile, with UnitedHealth Group Inc.’s CEO Andrew Witty taking on a more public-facing role that included testifying before Congress.
Thompson started his career as a certified public accountant and graduated from the University of Iowa. He lived in the Minneapolis suburb of Maple Grove and was the married father of two sons in high school.
A look at the first 24 hours following Brian Thompson’s killing
The cryptic meaning of message written on the assassin’s bullets
The words scrawled on the bullets used to kill UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson closely resemble the title of a book criticizing insurance companies and the tactics they use to deny claims, it has been revealed.
Curiously, the messages bear similarity to the title of a 2010 book on ‘why insurance companies don’t pay claims and what you can do about it’, called ‘Delay, Deny, Defend’.
Critics allege the tactic is used by insurance companies to ‘ensure your claim is either never paid or paid at a rate far below what you deserve’.
CEO was facing a DoJ investigation and lawsuit when he was killed
Last year the DoJ launched a probe into whether the private company of the nation’s biggest insurer, led by Thompson, was unfairly restricting competitors and running a monopoly.
In May, the City of Hollywood Firefighters’ Pension Fund initiated a complaint against Thompson and other executives, accusing the CEO of failing to tell investors about the federal probe before he unloaded over 31 percent of his stock, taking in $15.1 million in proceeds.
In legal documents, the fund said Thompson and other company execs sold over $117 million worth of UnitedHealth common stock during the four-month period when insiders knew about the federal antitrust investigation but the public did not.
Thompson had security detail for NYC trip but was alone when shooter pounced
Thompson had an in-house security team assigned to him for his stay in Manhattan, but they were not with him when he was shot dead as he walked to the company’s annual investor conference at a Hilton hotel in Midtown, a source told CNN.
It’s the norm for major health care companies to assign personal security to their top executives.
Timeline of the gunman’s movements
Killer arrived in NYC 10 days before murder
The unidentified killer rode a bus from Atlanta to New York City 10 days before he shot Thompson dead, arriving in Manhattan on November 24, according to CNN.
He reportedly spent his days bouncing around the city, and even visited the Hilton hotel days before the killing.
The suspect used a fake ID from New Jersey to check into a hostel in the Upper West Side. He paid in cash.
He checked out of the hostel on November 29 before checking back in on November 30.
Assassination triggers outpouring of hate directed at health insurance industry
The assassination of UnitedHealthcare executive Brian Thompson has triggered tasteless celebrations and bad taste support for the gunman who killed him.
Thompson was shot outside the Hilton Hotel in Manhattan on Wednesday morning by a masked assassin, who remains on the run and whose motive has not been disclosed.
As news of the cold-blooded killing spread, thousands declared they were happy at news of the horrific killing of the 50 year-old father of two and even cooed over the murderer’s apparent good looks.
Thompson was separated when he was murdered
Thompson purchased the $1million home near his family home in 2018, according to public records, with neighbors telling the Journal that he spent much of his time traveling.
How killer’s flirtatious moment helped cops in their hunt
A hostel clerk had a brief flirty moment with the suspected shooter of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson which handed authorities bombshell evidence by getting a better look at the assailant.
The staff member told CNN that she had asked the gunman to lower his mask while flirting with him as he checked into the HI New York City Hostel in Manhattan’s Upper West Side.