Bullets used in US healthcare exec’s killing had writing on them

New York: The masked gunman who stalked and killed the leader of one of the largest US health insurance companies outside a Manhattan hotel used ammunition emblazoned with the words “deny”, “defend”, and “depose”, law enforcement officials told multiple news outlets.

UnitedHealthcare chief executive Brian Thompson, 50, died in a dawn ambush on Wednesday (Thursday AEDT) as he walked to the company’s annual investor conference at a Hilton hotel in midtown Manhattan, blocks from tourist draws like Radio City Music Hall and the Museum of Modern Art. The reason behind the killing remains unknown.

Law enforcement officers and workers outside the New York Hilton Midtown in New York.Credit: Bloomberg

The words were carved into the shell casings found at the scene, police sources told the American ABC, AP and The New York Post. Reuters has not independently verified that information.

The words evoke the title of a 2010 book critical of the insurance industry titled Delay Deny Defend: Why Insurance Companies Don’t Pay Claims and What You Can Do About It. The author, Jay Feinman, a professor emeritus at Rutgers University Law School, wrote, “Sorry, no comment” in an email when contacted by Reuters.

“That is really unusual,” said Joseph Giacalone, a former New York Police Department sergeant who is now a professor at the John Jay College of Criminal Justice. “I have never seen it, and I spent a long time working investigations.”

Investigators recovered several 9mm bullet casings from outside the hotel and a mobile phone from the alleyway through which the shooter fled, NYPD Chief of Detectives Joseph Kenny said.

The killing and the gunman’s movements in the minutes before and afterwards were captured by nearby security cameras.

New York police released photos of a person they said was wanted for question in connection with the shooting.Credit: AP

Authorities have released a photo with a clear view of the suspect’s face, a day after publishing photos showing his face partially obscured by a ski mask, and have asked for the public’s help in identifying and locating him.

The manhunt led police to at least two hostels on Manhattan’s Upper West Side based on a tip that the suspect may have stayed at one, according to a law enforcement official briefed on the investigation who requested anonymity because they were not authorised to discuss the ongoing search.

Two detectives arrived at the Kama Central Park hostel with a photo of the shooter and asked staff if they recognised the man, an employee told the AP. Staff did not, the employee said, and the detectives left. A worker at the nearby HI New York City hostel also confirmed that police visited, but declined to provide further information.

Investigators also now believe the suspect may have travelled to New York last month on a bus that originated in Atlanta, one of the law enforcement officials said.

Police and federal agents have been collecting information from Greyhound in an attempt to identify the suspect and are working to determine whether he purchased the ticket to New York in late November, the official said.

Police Commissioner Jessica Tisch said at a news conference that while a motive had not yet been established, the shooting was no random act of violence. “Many people passed the suspect, but he appeared to wait for his intended target,” she said.

Investigators believe, judging from surveillance video and evidence collected from the scene, that the gunman had at least some prior firearms training and experience with guns. The weapon was equipped with a silencer, a law enforcement official told the AP.

Investigators are also looking at whether the suspect had pre-positioned the bike he used to escape into Central Park, the official said.

The casings found on the pavement were inscribed with words.Credit: AP

Authorities were running DNA and fingerprint analysis on items found nearby, including a water bottle, that they believe the suspect may have discarded, the official said.

Security camera video showed the killer approaching Thompson from behind, levelling his pistol and firing several shots, barely pausing to clear a gun jam while the health executive tumbled to the pavement.

Other cameras captured the initial stages of the suspect’s escape. He fled the block across a pedestrian plaza and then escaped on the bicycle. Police used drones, helicopters and dogs in an intensive search, but the killer’s whereabouts remained unknown.

Brian Thompson’s business generated $US281 billion ($437 billion) in revenue last year. Credit: AP

Police issued several other surveillance images of the man, who wore a hooded jacket and a mask that concealed most of his face and wouldn’t have attracted attention on a frigid day. Some of the photos were taken at a Starbucks coffee shop shortly before the shooting. Police have offered a reward of up to $US10,000 for information leading to an arrest and conviction.

Thompson, a father of two sons, had been with UnitedHealthcare since 2004 and served as chief executive for more than three years.

The insurer’s Minnesota-based parent company, UnitedHealth Group Inc, was holding its annual investor meeting in New York to update Wall Street on its direction and expectations for the coming year. The company ended the conference early after Thompson’s death.

“Brian was a highly respected colleague and friend to all who worked with him,” UnitedHealth Group said in a statement. “We are working closely with the New York Police Department and ask for your patience and understanding during this difficult time.”

Thompson’s wife, Paulette Thompson, told NBC News that he told her “there were some people that had been threatening him.” She didn’t have details but suggested the threats may have involved issues with insurance coverage.

In Maple Grove, Minnesota, where Thompson lived, police administrator Theresa Keehn told Reuters there were no reports of threats to Thompson, but there was one reported incident of “suspicious activity” at his home in June 2018.

Paulette Thompson was getting ready for bed when she reported seeing the deadbolt turning on their front door, the police report said. She hid in the bathroom “terrified”, but police found no sign of an attempted break-in and no one on the property.

Eric Werner, the police chief in the Minneapolis suburb where Thompson lived, said his department had not received any reports of threats against him.

UnitedHealthcare is the largest provider of Medicare Advantage plans in the US and manages health insurance coverage for employers and state and federally funded Medicaid programs.

AP, Reuters, Bloomberg

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