The CEO of America’s largest health insurance company was shot and killed by a masked attacker outside Manhattan’s Hilton Hotel on Wednesday morning.
UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson, 50, was gunned down around 6:45am in Midtown, hours before New Yorkers gather in the neighborhood for the annual Christmas tree lighting at Rockefeller Center.
Thompson was fatally shot in the chest and leg in a targeted attack by a masked man, who then fled down 6th Avenue on a bicycle. The NYPD has launched a huge manhunt to catch the killer, who is believed to have escaped into Central Park.
Witnesses said the suspected gunman was seen waiting outside the hotel before the shooting, and knew which door Thompson was going to emerge from before shooting him at point-blank range.
The CEO was rushed to Mount Sinai Hospital in critical condition, and was later pronounced dead.
Thompson was named UnitedHealthcare CEO in 2021 and earned a reported $10 million a year, and for several years prior, he ran the Medicare business within UnitedHealthcare.
He was slated to speak at an investor meeting at the Hilton Hotel soon after the shooting. According to a release from United Healthcare on Tuesday, he would announce the company’s hugely profitable 2025 financial outlook, including expected revenues upwards of $450 billion.
The suspect is at large, and is described as a white male wearing a cream-colored jacket, black face mask, black and white sneakers, and a grey backpack.
Sources reportedly said that Thompson, who lives in Minnesota with his wife and children, was not a guest at the hotel but had arrived early to prepare for his presentation.
The gunman apparently knew which door Thompson was going to emerge from, and gunned him down from several feet away. The suspect then jumped on a bicycle, and is believed to have fled to Central Park.
With the suspect still at large, the NYPD announced a $10,000 reward to anyone with information regarding the shooting, and said it plans to release two surveillance pictures to help track down the killer.
Witness Amar Abdelmula, a driver, told PIX11: ‘I wasn’t paying attention and then I heard the shot. It was silent gun, black gun. (I) saw him after he shot him, and he was running across the street. I tried take a picture, but too far away, not clear.
‘I was shocked. First time I see crime in front of me,’ he added. ‘I was afraid he (would) shoot me too, my car, I saw everything.’
A huge police presence descended on the scene near W. 54th St. and 6th Avenue Wednesday morning. The NYPD has not yet released a motive.
Michael Dissen, who was at the hotel for a different conference, told DailyMail.com he heard a ‘commotion’ at around 7.05am.
‘I just heard all these sirens and I thought, “New York City”, but then I went up and had coffee and I saw everyone looking at their phones and I saw what happened,’ he said.
United Healthcare’s annual investor conference reportedly begun without interruption on the second floor of the Hilton until news of the shooting began to circulate.
Without knowing it was Thompson who was hit, one attendee told the group that ‘someone got shot outside.’
CEO of parent company United Healthgroup Andrew Witty reportedly halted the meeting at the hotel just after 8am upon hearing of the tragedy.
He told attendees: ‘We’re dealing with a very serious medical situation with one of our team members. As a result, I’m afraid, we’re going to have to bring to a close the event.’
United is the biggest health insurer by market share in America. The company has been the subject of frequent protests by activists for allegedly systematically denying care for patients.
One such protest earlier this year led to the arrests of 11 people outside the United Healthcare headquarters in Minnetonka, Minnesota.
The company made headlines in February after it was subjected to a cyber-attack which cost $872 million.
Thompson is survived by his wife Paulette ‘Pauley’ Thompson, 51, and their two children who live in the family’s $1.5 million home in Maple Grove, Minnesota.
Mom-of-two Pauley is a practicing physical therapist for Park Nicollet Health Services with over 20 years of experience.
The mother has previously posted doting photos of herself and her two sons on family vacations, and gushed about how she loves spending time with her family and friends.
Thompson’s sister Enela Reveiz told the New York Times that she was stunned by the news of her brother’s slaying.
‘He was a good person and I am so sad,’ she said, describing Thompson as a good father to his two children.
Minnesota Governor and 2024 Democratic nominee for Vice-President Tim Walz, who was pictured with Thompson in 2022, said the shooting was ‘horrifying news and a terrible loss for the business and health care community in Minnesota.’
A New York Hilton Midtown general manager told CNN in a statement: ‘We are deeply saddened by this morning’s events in the area and our thoughts are with all affected by the tragedy. Additional questions should be directed to the New York Police Department.’
