United Healthcare CEO's Assassin Left 3 Cryptic Words on Bullet Shells Used in Murder
Police found a mysterious message on bullets used to kill CEO of major insurance group UnitedHealthcare, Brian Thompson, who was shot to death at point blank range after he was exiting a Manhattan hotel on Wednesday.
Investigators found the words “deny,” “defend”, and “depose” on the shell casings found at the scene.
The disturbing footage of the murder showed the masked gunman, sporting a black sweatshirt and face mask, shooting the healthcare CEO at least twice.
Thompson was shot in the back and once in the right calf, NYPD Commissioner Jessica Tisch said at a press conference.
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The victim was rushed to a local hospital but was pronounced dead at 7:12 a.m.
The killing is now being treated as a “targeted attack.”
“Many people passed the suspect, but he appeared to wait for his intended target,” Tisch told reporters.
“I want to be clear: At this time, every indication is that this was a premeditated, preplanned, targeted attack.”
Thompson was making his way to a UnitedHealthcare investors conference, which was due to take place inside the Hilton hotel he was killed outside of.
Police said the CEO’s schedule was widely known.
NYPD Chief of Detectives Joseph Kenny said the shooter arrived five minutes before Thompson arrived.
After the CEO left the hotel across the street, the gunman approached him from behind and fired shots.
“The shooter then walks toward the victim and continues to shoot. It appears that the gun malfunctions as he clears the jam and begins to fire again,” he added.
The killer then fled to a nearby alleyway, where a cell phone was recovered – believed to be linked to the shooter.
He was last seen riding into Central Park on a bike around 6:48 a.m., police said.
Investigators are working to determine whether the suspect had prepositioned the bike near the scene.
Police also discovered a water bottle and candy wrapper near the scene, which they believe to be connected to the shooter.
Investigators are running tests to determine whether any usable DNA or fingerprint evidence can be recovered,
The FBI is also working to recover any usable cellphone data from the gunman.
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