Search On For CEO Shooting Suspect, Last Seen In Central Park: Latest Updates

MIDTOWN, NY – Brian Thompson, the 50-year-old CEO of UnitedHealthcare – one of the largest and most valuable companies in the world – was shot and killed outside a Midtown hotel Wednesday morning in what police are calling a targeted attack.

At a news conference on Wednesday, NYPD officials said officers received a call around 6:45 a.m. about a shooting outside 1335 Sixth Avenue. When officers arrived a few minutes later, they found Thompson suffering from multiple gunshot wounds.

Thompson was taken to Mount Sinai West, where he succumbed to his injuries at 7:12 a.m., police said.

The address officials provided corresponds to Hilton Club The Residences, a large Midtown hotel. Police said Thompson was arriving early for a conference at the hotel when a masked man who had been waiting for him fired multiple shots from behind, striking Thompson "at least once" in the back and "at least once" in the right calf.

Video obtained by Fox 5 shows officers performing CPR on Thompson before he was rushed to the hospital.

According to police, the shooter fled the scene of the shooting on foot before getting on an e-bike. He was last seen entering Central Park on Center Drive at 6:48 a.m. – just a few minutes after he shot Thompson.

"The shooter arrived on foot, about five minutes prior to the victim's arrival," said NYPD Chief of Detectives Joe Kenny.

"We see at 6:44 the victim is walking alone toward the Hilton after exiting his hotel across the street. The shooter steps onto the sidewalk from behind a car, he ignores numerous other pedestrians, [and] approaches the victim from behind and shoots him in the back. The shooter then walks toward the victim and continues to shoot. It appears the gun malfunctions, [and] he clears the jam and begins to fire again."

No arrests have been made and an investigation is ongoing. Police described the gunman as last seen wearing a black jacket, black face mask, a cream or light brown jacket, black and white sneakers, and a "very distinctive" gray backpack.

A still image published by the Washington Post appears to show an individual with a similar backpack exiting the F train station at 57th Street and Sixth Avenue at approximately 6:15 a.m. on Wednesday.

Kenny demurred when asked if the shooter was a professional killer, but said that "from watching [surveillance] video it does seem that he’s proficient in the use of firearms as he’s able to clear the malfunctions pretty quickly."

Cops executed a search warrant of Thompson's hotel room on Wednesday and are working to identify a witness who was standing near Thompson when he was shot.

A Targeted Murder

The preliminary police investigation indicated that the shooting was a targeted murder.

"Many people passed the suspect, but he appeared to wait for his intended target," NYPD Commissioner Jessica Tisch said during a news conference. "I want to be clear: at this time every indication is that this was a premeditated, preplanned, targeted attack."

New York City Mayor Eric Adams said police were looking at evidence recovered from the scene and canvassing video. “Tell New Yorkers: NYPD is on the job,” he said. “Again, this was not what appears to be a just random act of violence. It seems to be clearly targeted by an individual and we will apprehend that individual.”

Thompson had been receiving threats, his wife Paulette Thompson told NBC News.

"There had been some threats," she said. "Basically, I don’t know, a lack of coverage? I don’t know details. I just know that he said there were some people that had been threatening him."

UnitedHealth, based in Minnetonka, Minnesota, is the largest insurer in the United States by market share. As of 2023, it employed or was affiliated with approximately 10 percent of all physicians in the United States.

The company's annual investor conference was scheduled to begin at 8 a.m. The event was canceled.

Thompson had served as CEO for more than three years and had been with the company since 2004.

Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz tweeted that the state is “sending our prayers to Brian’s family and the UnitedHealthcare team.”

“This is horrifying news and a terrible loss for the business and health care community in Minnesota,” Walz wrote.

Anyone with information about the incident is asked to call the NYPD's Crime Stoppers Hotline at 1-800-577-TIPS (8477) or, for Spanish, 1-888-57-PISTA (74782). The public can also submit their tips by logging onto the Crimestoppers website at https://crimestoppers.nypdonline.org/ or on X @NYPDTips. All calls are confidential.

A $10,000 reward is available, police said.

Video of Wednesday's press conference and additional images of the shooter are below.

This is a breaking news story and it was last updated at 9:50 p.m. on Wednesday. Patch will continue to provide updates as more information becomes available.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.