An unidentified gunman walked up behind UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson on Wednesday morning and opened fire outside the New York Hilton Midtown in Manhattan before disappearing into the streets of the Big Apple, sparking a massive manhunt.
Authorities have not released a motive, but after shell casings were found at the crime scene with the words “deny,” “take down” and “protect” — a possible reference to the book “Delay, denial, defense: Why Insurance Companies Don't Pay Claims and What You Can Do About It' – speculation swirled that the killing may have grown out of resentment over a denied claim.
Thompson was separated from his wife, Pauline, at the time of his death, and the Minnesota-based firm's parent company laid off workers in multiple states in September, according to Star-Tribune.
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This 2017 file photo of Brian Thompson. was published via Businesswire when he was named CEO of the UnitedHealthcare Unit in 2017. (Business Wire)
As police retrace the steps of the suspected killer and search for a killer, here's a timeline of how things unfolded.
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A screenshot of surveillance footage released by the New York Police Department shows a person of interest wanted in connection with the death of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson, who was killed in midtown Manhattan on Wednesday, Dec. 4, 2024. (NYPD Crime Stoppers)
In the days before the attack, police sources told Fox News that the shooter had taken a Greyhound bus from Atlanta, Georgia, to New York.
He checked into a hostel near Central Park before the murder, using a fake ID and paying in cash.
A security camera captures a person of interest in the killing of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson. (Gideon Platt/Stage Star Deli)
Wednesday, December 4
Around 6:14 am: Before the attack, NYPD recovered video from a Midtown coffee shop showing the masked suspect, and video from a security camera outside the Stage Star Deli near the corner of 55th Street and Sixth Avenue shows him walking by several times minutes later.
New York police have released still images of the alleged killer of the UnitedHealthcare CEO at a Starbucks near the scene of the crime shortly before it happened. (NYPD)
Around 6:40 am: Video from a security camera outside the hotel captured the ambush.
It shows a masked man waiting outside the venue step up behind Thompson, who is approaching from another hotel across the street, and shoot him from behind – in the leg, back and chest.
Police arrived in less than three minutes, but the suspect had already fled. Thompson, a Minnesota native who was in New York for a work-related conference, was unconscious and unresponsive, according to the NYPD. He was rushed to hospital and pronounced dead.
A surveillance image released by the New York Police Department shows the suspect in the Wednesday, Dec. 4, 2024, shooting death of United Healthcare CEO Brian Thompson. (NYPD Crimestoppers)
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The cameras show the path of the killer walking away from the crime scene. He dropped a phone in an alley between 54th and 55th streets, which authorities were checking for fingerprints and other clues. Turned onto the Avenue of the Americas, hopped on a bike and headed north toward Central Park. When he exited the park, he was not carrying a backpack seen on previous surveillance video.
Around 7 am: Video shows a man who appears to fit the description of the shooter riding a bicycle on the Upper West Side, more than 30 blocks from the crime scene and across Central Park. He is no longer carrying the backpack captured on earlier surveillance video.
Police were searching the park for evidence Friday morning.
NYPD is offering a $10,000 reward in the case, asking the public to call the Crime Stoppers hotline at 1-800-577-TIPS (8477). You can also send a tip through their website. All calls are kept confidential.
Fox News' Alexis McAdams, Julia Bonavita and Christina Coulter contributed to this report.
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