The New York Police Department has released new photos of the man suspected of killing UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson.
In these pictures, released Saturday night, the suspect is seen in a black coat with a mask on getting into the back of a cab. This comes after the department released the first unmasked photos of the suspect earlier this week.
Thompson, 50, was shot at point-blank range near the New York Hilton Midtown on Wednesday morning just before a scheduled investor meeting. The NYPD is offering a $10,000 reward for information, while the FBI is offering $50,000.
NYPD divers searched a pond in Central Park on Saturday for the firearm the suspect used, CNN reports.
The suspect may have used a veterinary gun, NYPD Chief of Detectives Joseph Kenny said earlier this week. Veterinary guns are larger guns used by farmers to put down animals without making a loud noise.
In addition to the gun, police are still searching for the bike the suspect fled on.
Police also found a gray backpack they believe belonged to the suspect in Central Park on Friday. After sending it to a forensics lab, investigators discovered the backpack contained Monopoly money and a Tommy Hilfiger jacket, CNN reports, but no gun.
New York City Mayor Eric Adams said Saturday “the net is tightening” around the suspect.
“Let him continue to believe he can hide behind a mask,” Adams said. “We’re going to reveal who he is, and we’re going to bring him to justice.”
Police say the suspect arrived in New York City on November 24 after jumping on a Greyhound bus departing from Atlanta, Georgia. However, officials are not yet sure exactly where he boarded.
NYPD officers arrived in Atlanta on Saturday, where local police are also assisting with the investigation, according to CNN.
After arriving in New York on November 24, the suspect checked into an Upper West Side hostel with a fake New Jersey ID. While in the hostel, he slept in a multi-person room with two other men and wore a mask for the majority of his stay, according to CNN.
Then, on December 4, the suspect hid behind a car outside Thompson’s Hilton hotel in Midtown Manhattan for about five minutes before the CEO exited, police said. The suspect was spotted at a nearby Starbucks on West 56th Street and 6th Avenue shortly before the shooting.
The shooter, who was wearing a mask, approached Thompson from behind and shot him in the right calf and back at 6:46 a.m. Video of the incident shows the shooter calmly walking up behind Thompson before shooting him, then calmly crossing the street. The footage also showed a bystander running away as the suspect opened fire.
Thompson was pronounced dead at a nearby hospital.
The suspect fled the scene on a bike into Central Park. Police have later footage of him entering the Port Authority Bus Terminal, but none of him leaving, indicating he may have left the city.
Investigators found three live 9mm rounds and three discharged 9mm shell casings, as well as a cell phone, at the scene of the shooting. They also recovered a candy wrapper and water bottle believed to belong to the suspect.
The bullet casings police found at the scene had the words “deny”, “defend” and “depose” written on them, mirroring a popular phrase in the insurance industry.
A 2020 book by Jay Feinman about the insurance industry also bears a similar title: Delay Deny Defend: Why Insurance Companies Don’t Pay Claims and What You Can Do About It. The book describes itself as an “expose of insurance injustice and a plan for consumers and lawmakers to fight back.”
NYPD Commissioner Jessica Tisch told CNN on Friday that investigators have a “huge amount of evidence” in their search, including DNA evidence, fingerprints and a “massive camera canvass” of the suspect’s movements.
More to come…
