New York City Police have released enhanced CCTV images of a “person of interest” in the targeted killing of Brian Thompson, CEO of UnitedHealthcare, outside the New York Hilton Midtown hotel on Wednesday, Al Jazeera reports.
The clearer images, released Thursday, show a man’s face without the mask obscuring it in previously released images. The man is seen wearing a hooded jacket.
Thompson, 50, was fatally shot in a pre-dawn ambush. Video footage widely circulated on social media depicts the assailant emerging from behind a vehicle and firing multiple shots at Thompson before fleeing the scene. NYPD officials have described the attack as premeditated and targeted.
Multiple news outlets, citing unnamed law enforcement sources, report that shell casings recovered at the scene bore the words “deny,” “defend,” and “depose.” This inscription mirrors the title of a 2010 book, Delay, Deny, Defend: Why Insurance Companies Don’t Pay Claims and What You Can Do About It, which details tactics insurance companies allegedly use to avoid paying claims.
While police have yet to publicly announce a motive, Thompson’s wife revealed to US media that her husband had received threats. His death has sparked a significant online reaction, with some users celebrating the murder or expressing sympathy for the perpetrator. Many cited negative experiences with UnitedHealthcare’s denial of medical coverage as justification for their sentiments.
Blogger Lorenz, in a Substack post, acknowledged the online sentiment while cautioning against violence, stating that while anger towards insurance companies for denying claims is understandable, murder is not the answer.
UnitedHealthcare, one of the largest health insurers in the US, covers over 49 million Americans. The company reported revenues of $371.6 billion in 2023, a nearly 15 percent increase year-over-year. Thompson, who joined the company in 2004 and served as CEO since 2021, received $10.2 million in compensation that same year.
