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Police trying to find the suspected killer of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson are investigating whether or not the alleged shooter prepositioned an e-bike near the scene of the incident as a method of escape, police sources advised ABC Information.
A masked gunman carried out a “brazen, focused assault” that was “premeditated,” NYPD Commissioner Jessica Tisch mentioned at a Wednesday information convention. The motive stays unknown, police mentioned.
Thompson, 50, was in New York Metropolis for the UnitedHealthcare traders convention, which was scheduled to begin at 8 a.m. His schedule was extensively identified, police sources mentioned.
He was shot a number of occasions at shut vary exterior the Hilton Lodge — the place the convention was being held — at round 6:40 a.m. by the intersection of West 54th Avenue and Sixth Avenue.
ABC Information obtained this photograph of the suspect.
Obtained by ABC Information
The suspect — who was caught on surveillance cameras earlier than, throughout and instantly after the taking pictures — had been mendacity in wait close to the lodge.
After the taking pictures, he fled on foot into an alley, the place a telephone believed to be linked to the suspect was later recovered, police sources mentioned.
The suspect then fled on a motorbike and he was final seen driving into Central Park at 6:48 a.m., police mentioned.
The shooter was caught on surveillance video at 5 a.m. the morning of the taking pictures exterior Frederick Douglass Homes, a public housing challenge on the Higher West Facet, sources advised ABC Information.
That footage confirmed the suspect carrying what gave the impression to be an e-bike battery.
Investigators are gathering proof because the seek for the suspect continues. The FBI — which has essentially the most refined know-how for retrieving usable information from cellphones — is helping with the investigation, the police sources mentioned.
This undated photograph supplied by UnitedHealth Group reveals UnitedHealthcare chief govt officer Brian Thompson.
UnitedHealth Group by way of AP
Police additionally recovered a water bottle and sweet wrapper from the scene of the taking pictures which they imagine are linked to the gunman. Fingerprint and DNA assessments on the gadgets are ongoing, regulation enforcement sources advised ABC Information.
Detectives imagine the gunman is just not an expert killer, sources mentioned. Bullet casings discovered on the scene had the phrases “deny,” “defend” and “depose” written on them, police sources mentioned.
Thompson’s spouse, Paulette Thompson, mentioned in a press release that she was “shattered” by the “mindless killing.”
“Brian was an extremely loving, beneficiant, proficient man who actually lived life to the fullest and touched so many lives,” she mentioned. “Most significantly, Brian was an extremely loving father to our two sons and will likely be enormously missed.”
Police urge the general public to name Crime Stoppers at 1-800-577-TIPS with any info.
A reward poster hangs on exterior the Hilton Lodge in midtown Manhattan the place Brian Thompson, the CEO of UnitedHealthcare, was fatally shot, on Dec. 4, 2024, in New York.
Stefan Jeremiah/AP
ABC Information’ Mark Crudele and Josh Margolin contributed to this report.
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