NY - UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson fatally shot in Midtown. #6

[TexLil]

Good points.

As I see it--there are three potential motives for killing BT.

1. The killer has a loved one who was denied coverage.
2. The killer is part of a shadowy group, as you say.
3. The killer was hired by someone to kill BT.

Number 1 is Occam's Razor, but the most likely scenario is looking more unlikely in this case. Why? Because the killer is going out of his way to send messages. It's likely those messages are intended to send LE on a goose chase. But still, Number 1 can't be ruled out.

Number 2 is in the running because there are strong indicators that the killer had at least one accomplice. The bike showed up out of the blue when the killer needed it, and it disappeared when he was done with it. The killer seemed to know BT would arrive at the Hilton early and he was in place. That could have been just good planning, but it could also have been someone reporting because the photo of the killer on his cellphone was prior to the killing. Who was he talking to?

Number 3 is also a possibility because BT was involved in a civil suit along with other high-rollers concerning insider trading. If BT had information that could incriminate someone else, he might have been a target. And if that were the case, all those little messages would be a handy distraction from the real reason.

Right now, I'm leaning toward Number 2, but that could change.

4. Killer worked for UHC and/or is aware of 'unacceptable' (in his mind) practices. He acted as a whistleblower to remove the cause of the practices (in his mind) as well as to get attention on the situation.

MOO

 

[Janitor101]

BBM

Totally agree with you. On this point, it really makes me wonder if this search goes on long term, if he’ll get frustrated as general public interest wanes and media coverage slows down. I wonder if that will trigger him to reach out to the media anonymously and release more info as to his motive to call attention back to his cause.

This was exactly my thought too! The Unibomber made this critical error by releasing his manifesto when the general public had lost interest in his case. He was quickly arrested when his own brother recognized his bizzare rantings.

 

[alfredfrajesco]

It was reported early on that he was seen near the Frederick Douglass Houses at approx 5 am with the bike battery. That’s 2.9 miles away from the HI Hostel. The newer timelines I’ve seen say he left the hostel around 5:30 am. He was spotted near the Hilton at 5:41, so it is assumed he used the bike to get there. Either he left the hostel much earlier that day, or the Frederick Douglass siting was on a different day.

I've stayed at the HI hostel and it's right next to the Frederick Douglass projects

Edited to add map

 

[Rumination1]

Wondering if he had multiple fake photo IDs so that he traveled under another name on the Greyhound bus trip coming north.

Do you all think he would have anticipated that LE might find a video of him arriving at the bus station in NYC 10 days prior to this murder? If he didn't think this would happen, he may not have been as careful prior to his arrival in NYC.

But, it's possible that he anticipated this possibility and may have covered his tracks by getting on that Greyhound bus at a stop that wasn't near where he lived and taken another mode of transporation (e.g. Amtrak) to get to where he picked up the Greyhound bus.

Pardon my ignorance but how did they know to look for the footage of him , ten days prior and track him to the hostel..? That must have a name attached

 

[Deleted member 341776]

Dbm

 

[NoSpoonFeeding]

True, but he may not have actually had the weapon until the morning of the murder.

I can't tell what you are suggesting here but...
The gun thought to have been used, would have required the shooter to have done a goodly amount of practice. You can't just have this gun handed to you and be expected to assemble, load, and use it as the shooter did in the video. Shooting under any kind of stress, including wanting to kill and get away immediately, requires proficiency. MOO personal experience

"This is not a common firearm," firearms expert Steve Wolf told Newsweek. "Very few were manufactured,

What we know about gun used in UnitedHealth CEO assassina...

Investigators believe the gunman used a rare, integrally suppressed pistol, possibly a Brügger & Thomet Station Six.

www.newsweek.com

 

[Tortoise]

I think I'm leaning towards there being an unwitting accomplice. Someone who maybe thought the killer wanted to confront BT, or posed as a reporter, or media photographer, or security even, but hadn't contemplated a killing. Someone who could have watched BT in the dining room before leaving the hotel, or known if he ordered a room service breakfast, and phoned the killer about that time.

 

[Tortoise]

Pardon my ignorance but how did they know to look for the footage of him , ten days prior and track him to the hostel..? That must have a name attached

I think they have more footage of him, and traced him back to leaving the street of the hostel earlier that morning, and then found out the date he first checked in from the hostel.

 

[DizzyB]

I've stayed at the HI hostel and it's right next to the Frederick Douglass projects

Edited to add map


View attachment 550305

Thanks! So basically he was spotted outside that morning with the battery after leaving the hostel. Can you provide any info on that hostel-would it be weird to never speak to the roommates over a ten day period, or do some people keep to themselves? Is there enough room to stow a couple of backpacks, a battery, a few coats and a gun? Do you dump your bedding when you leave? What’s the shower situation? Did they check you against your ID when you got there? Is there a check out procedure?

 

[penguinface]

Would lithium batteries be allowed inside a hostel or hotel?

It would have to be a more specific rule, like bike batteries not being allowed, otherwise there’d be no phones, laptops, cameras, tablets, portable power banks, any rechargeable devices basically, if it was a blanket ban on lithium batteries.

 

[alfredfrajesco]

Thanks! So basically he was spotted outside that morning with the battery after leaving the hostel. Can you provide any info on that hostel-would it be weird to never speak to the roommates over a ten day period, or do some people keep to themselves? Is there enough room to stow a couple of backpacks, a battery, a few coats and a gun? Do you dump your bedding when you leave? What’s the shower situation? Did they check you against your ID when you got there? Is there a check out procedure?

I stayed there in 2004 so can't remember too many details I'm afraid.

 

[IQuestion]

I don’t believe we know what name was on the fake NJ license he used at the hostel. I have no idea how fake IDs work but I’m not sure it would be something that was a joke or reference to a criminal.
I’d assume it would be something rather commonplace American like Anthony Anderson, but I suppose given that we think he looks possibly Lebanese or Iranian or from a country in the Caucasus, it could be a name common to one of those places
Jmo

MESQUITE021 OMG!! I spent hours looking at pics of 25/30 yr old Lebanese men earlier this afternoon, because the eyebrows and the bridge/shape of "UnSub's " nose just kept reminding of someone from there. I am "cosmetic surgery friendly" and study faces a lot. I am fascinated by changes that can be made just from a chin implant and reduction of a large/bent or oddly formed nose. (Can't help it, I live in the land of sunshine and cosmetic enhancement.) I really like trying to figure out how people can be more aesthetically pleasing....I'm always looking at faces of people in magazines and using a pen to alter their looks. Making noses narrower, lips plumper, arching eyebrows, creating stronger jaw lines. etc.) And my point? Most young American men who wear expensive clothes would not be content with such a prominent nose. But it does appear as if he has an attractive smile and straight teeth. Yeah, I know a hardened detective couldn't give a hoot about what I see/think about the "unsub's appearance." But, the thick eye brows and nose scream far eastern Meditteranean origins.

 

[BrianJohnson]

That's not true at all; he left cases, live rounds, his backpack and there are numerous pictures of him.

Indeed but if he was forced to pay for everything by card his name and address would be traced straight away by police.

I am not a fan of the cashless society proposals, but if there was one BT likely wouldn’t have been shot in NYC

By killing BT they could have been making that point

 

[Elley Mae]

The suspect allegedly arrived in New York on Nov. 24 on a Greyhound bus that departed from Atlanta, though it is unclear exactly when he may have boarded. Sources told ABC News he was spotted on board in Washington, D.C.

UnitedHealthcare CEO shooting latest: Nationwide manhunt leads police to Atlanta

NYPD detectives arrived in Atlanta on Saturday as they probed leads in the shooting of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson in New York.

abc7ny.com

…

The suspect got on a Greyhound somewhere between Atlanta and the Big Apple and arrived at the Port Authority Bus Terminal in Midtown on Nov. 24 at around 10 p.m., according to sources and police.

Retracing the steps of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson’s suspected killer — from arrival in NYC to post-shooting disappearing act

As the hunt continues for the gunman believed to have executed UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson outside a Midtown Hilton early Wednesday, new details have shed light on the alleged killer’…

nypost.com

…

 

[BrianJohnson]

4. Killer worked for UHC and/or is aware of 'unacceptable' (in his mind) practices. He acted as a whistleblower to remove the cause of the practices (in his mind) as well as to get attention on the situation.

MOO

Unless he worked remotely on a permanent basis and never went into the office he would be recognised by dozens of UHC employees. I am sure one of them would love the $70k reward money, very unlikely to be a UHC employee imho

 

[SleuthJan]

After seeing the response online, I sadly think people are not going to give valid tips to find this gunman even if they do spot him. LE has a massive task on their hands.

 

[fridaybaker]

hostels want to know who is there for liability purposes, no doubt. being asked for an ID and to see your face at the hostel is predictable. that said, i don't believe the mask ideas either. i think he just depended on the hood to mask most of his face.

And it worked to a large degree. You make a great point, though. We're talking about a mask, but the hood, together with it, helped tremendously. I have a feeling he was just hoping that the angle of the camera at the hostel was such that the hood would obscure enough in the event he was asked to remove the mask. As a result, we still have limited information about his looks.

Aside from what seem to be "mistakes", I do think this guy prepared long and hard for this mission. I think the arrival 10 days beforehand was to go through every detail and eventuality in his head and to do walk-throughs. Maybe even timing things, looking for alternatives in case of unforseen events., etc. Knowing he would likely be on camera everywhere, he realized he'd have to be pretty covered up from head-to-toe 24-7. Hence, we know of 200 images, but only one where he's unmasked. Otherwise, hood and mask. Hood and mask.

 

[Baby baby Jane]

I can't tell what you are suggesting here but...
The gun thought to have been used, would have required the shooter to have done a goodly amount of practice. You can't just have this gun handed to you and be expected to assemble, load, and use it as the shooter did in the video. Shooting under any kind of stress, including wanting to kill and get away immediately, requires proficiency. MOO personal experience

"This is not a common firearm," firearms expert Steve Wolf told Newsweek. "Very few were manufactured,

What we know about gun used in UnitedHealth CEO assassina...

Investigators believe the gunman used a rare, integrally suppressed pistol, possibly a Brügger & Thomet Station Six.

www.newsweek.com

Like modern day Bickle (Taxi Driver) … he is practicing in solitude, perhaps in his room when everyone is gone, or in bathroom. (But prob was practicing the real shots prior somewhere a bit more rural …)

Can see similarities in the eye & brows …

 

[nhmemorymaker]

It was reported early on that he was seen near the Frederick Douglass Houses at approx 5 am with the bike battery. That’s 2.9 miles away from the HI Hostel. The newer timelines I’ve seen say he left the hostel around 5:30 am. He was spotted near the Hilton at 5:41, so it is assumed he used the bike to get there. Either he left the hostel much earlier that day, or the Frederick Douglass siting was on a different day.

This 5 AM spotting is still a very confusing detail. Some of the timelines out there, include it, and some don't.

 

[mrstfs]

And it worked to a large degree. You make a great point, though. We're talking about a mask, but the hood, together with it, helped tremendously. I have a feeling he was just hoping that the angle of the camera at the hostel was such that the hood would obscure enough in the event he was asked to remove the mask. As a result, we still have limited information about his looks.

Aside from what seem to be "mistakes", I do think this guy prepared long and hard for this mission. I think the arrival 10 days beforehand was to go through every detail and eventuality in his head and to do walk-throughs. Maybe even timing things, looking for alternatives in case of unforseen events., etc. Knowing he would likely be on camera everywhere, he realized he'd have to be pretty covered up from head-to-toe 24-7. Hence, we know of 200 images, but only one where he's unmasked. Otherwise, hood and mask. Hood and mask.

And it also appears he’s wearing a tight cap on his head under the hood that’s hiding all of his hair. Or am I seeing this wrong?