THE suspected killer of CEO Brian Thompson was flirting in an unmasked picture an hour before he assassinated the healthcare boss.
The New York Police Department (NYPD) has shared a recent picture of the suspected shooter having a conversation with a receptionist at the HI New York City Hostel just before the bold attack in Midtown Manhattan.
Cops have battled to track down the at-large killer as in most CCTV footage the suspect has carefully had his face masked.
But the suspect slipped up and pulled down the covering as he was “flirting” with the receptionist, police sources told the New York Post.
NYPD and FBI agents searched the hostel on Amsterdam Avenue and found the major clue captured when he checked into the hostel on November 30.
Police believe he first checked into the hostel on November 24 and then left on the 29th, before checking back in on the 30th.
The suspect used a fake New Jersey driver’s licence to check into the accommodation.
The fresh CCTV snap shows the suspect wearing a similar coat to what the person who shot the CEO as wearing.
He can be seen beaming at the staff member, with a woman working at the hostel telling authorities the pair were flirting at the time.
Cops tracked him to the hostel after they found other CCTV footage of him in the area at 5am on Wednesday – just an hour before he’s believed to have shot the UnitedHealthcare CEO.
A search of the hostel room he slept in at about 6.30pm on Wednesday revealed nothing of note, sources said.
He is believed to have stayed in the multi-person room with up to a dozen other men and wore a mask for most of his stay.
A tourist from Denmark said: “They [roommates] tried to get into the room but they couldn’t because the police said no.
“Some kind of investigation so they were pretty shocked because they shared a room with that person who could be pretty bad.”
The hostel says it is fully cooperating with the investigation.
The suspect is believed to have arrived in New York City on November 24 – 10 days before the killing.
He arrived in the city on a Greyhound bus that travelled from Atalanta to New York, but authorities don’t know when he boarded it.
The suspect was careful with covering his face as he tried to “become a ghost”, a retired NYPD sergeant told CNN.
Felipe Rodriguez said: “He tried to become a ghost, basically, and the ruse that he used was ‘Let me hide in plain sight’.”
Rodriguez said he may have fled into Central Park to change his clothing and evade cops.
He said: “He already knows that we’ve already picked up at least his clothing to be able to broadcast over police radio, so what you wanna do is quickly change out of that.”
It comes after chilling CCTV footage shows the moment the suspect shot down the victim while another clip shows the shooter on his phone before the murder.
Police found the words “deny,” “depose” and “defend” scrawled on bullets the gunman used indicating it could be a secret message.
Mystery surrounds the assassination of the healthcare CEO, with expert former senior British military intelligence officer Phillip Ingram claiming it was a professional hit.
MYSTERY MOTIVE
No motive has been released yet for the killing, but police believe Thompson was “specifically targeted.”
Forensics teams discovered a chilling message left on the bullets the killer used to murder Thompson in cold blood.
The words “deny,” “depose,” and “defend,” were found on live rounds and shell casings at the scene, police sources told the New York Post.
Those words could have been a reference to the book Delay, Deny, Defend, which covered insurance companies and why they refuse to pay claims.
There is speculation the killer could have been a disgruntled patient with UnitedHealthcare exacting some form of revenge.
The book’s author, Jay M. Feinman, refused to speak following the murder.
A $10,000 reward for information related to the killer has been offered by the NYPD.
Police have urged the public to call Crime Stoppers on 1-800-577-TIPS with any information.
On Thursday, New York Mayor Eric Adams expressed his shock over the shooting.
“In all of my years of law enforcement, I have never seen a silencer before,” he said.
“And so that was really something that was shocking to us all.”
He said on MSNBC’s Morning Joe that he believed investigators were “going to apprehend the person” soon.
TRIBUTES PAID
Meanwhile, Thompson’s wife, Paulette, said her husband had been receiving threats in the run-up to his murder.
A fake bomb threat targeting Thompson’s home was sent approximately 12 hours after his assassination, as reported by TMZ.
It has also been revealed the couple were estranged, with the pair living in separate homes less than a mile apart in suburban Maple Grove, Minnesota.
An emotional Paulette paid tribute to her late husband in a statement.
“Brian was an incredibly loving, generous, talented man who truly lived life to the fullest and touched so many lives,” she said.
“Most importantly, Brian was an incredibly loving father to our two sons and will be greatly missed.”
Thompson, who had been the CEO of America’s largest private health insurer since April 2021, earned a salary of almost $9.9 million.
He was with the company for 20 years and was reportedly under investigation by the Department of Justice at the time of his death.
UnitedHealth Group Statement on Brian Thompson
UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson was shot and killed in a brazen attack on December 4 as he was leaving a New York City hotel. Parent company UnitedHealth Group released the following statement:
“We are deeply saddened and shocked at the passing of our dear friend and colleague Brian Thompson, the CEO of UnitedHealthcare.
“Brian was a highly respected colleague and friend to all who worked with him.
“We are working closely with the New York Police Department and ask for your patience and understanding during this difficult time.
“Our hearts go out to Brian’s family and all who were close to him.”
Thompson, along with fellow execs Stephen Helmsley, Erin McSweeney, and Tom Roos, was facing a DOJ probe after netting a combined $101.5 million from stock sales over four months before the public became aware of a federal antitrust investigation.
On February 16, less than two weeks before news of the probe went public, Thompson exercised stock options and sold shares worth $15.1 million.
Thompson had been assigned an in-house security detail during his trip to New York City, a source said, but that detail was not with him at the time of the shooting.
But a former senior security director at another major insurance company told CNN it is often hard to get executives to accept security even when they are facing threats.
Other healthcare providers have stepped up security for their executives in the wake of Thompson’s murder.
Timeline of Brian Thompson’s murder
BRIAN Thompson, the 50-year-old CEO of UnitedHealthcare, has been shot to death, and a desperate search is underway for his killer.
Here is everything we know about Thompson’s murder so far.
December 2 – Thompson travels from his home in Minnesota to New York City for an investor conference in Midtown Manhattan.
December 4, 6:45 am – Thompson walks from his hotel across the street to the New York Hilton Midtown and is murdered by a masked shooter. The execution was caught on surveillance, and the suspect was seen biking away toward Central Park. Cops spark a citywide search for the assassin.
December 4, later that morning – News broke the shooting victim was Thompson, who was the CEO of America’s largest private healthcare provider. Cops released disturbing images of the execution, offered a reward for information, and made a desperate plea for New Yorkers to keep their eyes out.
December 4, afternoon – Thompson’s estranged wife Paulette revealed her husband had been threatened before he was shot.
December 4, afternoon – Cops released more eerie images of the suspect ordering at Starbucks that partially revealed his face. The U.S. Sun confirmed the coffee shop was just two blocks away from the shooting, but it’s unclear when he stopped by.
December 5, morning – Reports claim the words “deny,” “dispose,” and “defend” were engraved on live rounds and shell casings left behind by the assassin. These words echo the book Delay, Deny, Defend, which is about the failings of the healthcare industry. The author of the book had no comment on the reports.
December 5, morning – Cops raid a hostel in the Upper West Side of New York City where the suspect is said to have stayed. It’s believed he wore a mask for most of the time he was there.
December 5, morning – A person of interest in Thompson’s murder is pictured. He’s wearing a hood in the photo, but his full face could be seen breaking into a beaming grin. Still, no arrests have been made in the investigation.
