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

[MassGuy]

But not impossible, right? This was a contingency he had to have prepared for. He was in the city for so long. Couldn’t have assumed he would never be asked to unmask.

I deal in probabilities based on the evidence, not extremely remote theories that aren’t supported by evidence or common sense.

I enjoy being right.

 

[MesquiteO21]

After trying to read every post, almost impossible to catch up before needing to ask a question:
What name did he use to check into the hostel? Obviously didn't use his real name. Since he likes "teasing LE" I wondered if he used Don B. Cooper, Armen K. Smither,...would be interesting to see how far he went with the pre-planning? No indication if he used an old English name, one more ethnic, a made up name, or from someone in real life. (Just imagine how many LE would be on your block if he used your name/identity?)
My next question is for anyone "trained in shooting" Is the perp's stance unusual, other than clearing the gun, does anything standout that would indicate international/special forces training? How he holds his firearm, wide stance, dominant hand/foot forward stance....etc.??
Was the monopoly money "new prints" or from an old original game box? (They are very different!) Just curious?

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

 

[armchairagatha]

I deal in probabilities based on the evidence, not extremely remote theories that aren’t supported by evidence or common sense.

I enjoy being right.

I am not saying he necessarily wore a skin mask. It could have been as simple as becoming clean shaven if he normally wore a beard. Occam’s razor is usually the simplest and not some far fetched theory.

 

[whitelilac]

He also had no idea he would be traced to that particular hostel where he briefly unmasked.
btw, how was he actually found by police to have stayed there? I don't remember right now.

 

[wibbleflea]

This may be of use to some members of the chat. Police Off the Cuff YouTube channel had a very interesting discussion in which the topic of conspiracy came up. The three former police started to count down the publicly known information and they all agreed the murder isn't adding up to a single actor. One of three member panel is a retired detective who is a lawyer and a professor of Criminology. Another good channel discussing the case is DutyRon. One of the key presenters is a retired NYPD detective who remains active as an instructor. Both channels discuss how evidence is worked, and they will discuss law and process.

We’ve read posts on WS from people who attend and organise these conferences, telling us that there are preps and dry runs. Those posters wrote about the importance of a conference for institutional investors, where the CEO is the key figure and will always arrive early. We know that BT arrived on the Monday and there’s a likelihood that he would have strolled from his hotel to the conference hotel, quite possibly observed by the shooter. Watching this video left me disappointed. (I know they’re not current officers.)

 

[jesse]

I would never be able to handle hearing strangers snore, burp, fart

I stayed in hostels in Europe when I was young. I'm way too high-maintenance now.

 

[dotr]

Dec 8, 2024
Here's where the investigation into the murder of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson sits five days after his death.

 

[Sakura2Sophia4Lucia]

He also had no idea he would be traced to that particular hostel where he briefly unmasked.
btw, how was he actually found by police to have stayed there? I don't remember right now.

My understanding is that LE found him on video in that general area and LE interviewed places in that vicinity, and discovered that he had stayed at this hostel. I don't have the link, but perhaps somebody else has the link or can correct me or add to my recollection. JMO

 

[Sundog]

This is what I've been wondering the whole time. I still think the most logical explanation is he's a student, his family is not local and they did not expect him to return home for Thanksgiving, and school was on break so it was not abnormal for him to not be on campus.

Yes, I think the timing was planned because BT was in town for the conference, but I can't help but think the 10 whole days (!!) he spent in NYC was planned purposely around a pre-planned break from school wherein him being away would not have been suspicious at all.

If he is a graduate student, then he may not have been expected to spend Thanksgiving at home with family, if he has a family. Lots of graduate students spend the holidays on their own in the area where they attend university. But this guy is likely a loner, he may not have had anyone who was expecting him at Thanksgiving.

 

[rainbowshummingbird]

He also had no idea he would be traced to that particular hostel where he briefly unmasked.
btw, how was he actually found by police to have stayed there? I don't remember right now.

I’m guessing that police found him by backtracking and searching video that matched the murderer’s physical description.

 

[KaylynnCouture]

If he is a graduate student, then he may not have been expected to spend Thanksgiving at home with family, if he has a family. Lots of graduate students spend the holidays on their own in the area where they attend university. But this guy is likely a loner, he may not have had anyone who was expecting him at Thanksgiving.

Yes, agreed.

Or, as I keep thinking...whoever he would normally spend Thanksgiving with is no longer alive due to UHC (denied claim, etc). I think this is the strongest motive (that a loved one was directly impacted by UHC and therefore, BT was the target).

 

[wibbleflea]

Especially because he wasn’t wearing like a ski mask or something that looks like “hey this guys about to commit a murder.” It’s a standard medical mask that is commonly seen.

In the photos in the hostel (not the cab) he looks to be wearing something around his neck, which he pulled down for the ID check and pulled up to act as a mask. It’s not a surgical mask.

The question may have been asked flirtatiously or not but if the hostel has rules about not accepting locals, they’ll ask to see ID and if they do that, they’ll need to see the face match the ID.

 

[branmuffin]

Thank you. It was EASY to find out about this meeting - including for the large number of unhappy people.

I think that the CEO became a symbol - isn't that why assassinations generally are planned or carried out? JFK was not responsible for the things Oswald thought him to be - but was certainly a figurehead for what Oswald opposed (just an example).

It's possible somebody, somewhere, knew that BT had no security detail (had had one earlier? his wife says he had death threats - per NBC, posted several times already).

I think BT was hired to present himself as the cheerful and completely unafraid head of this company (that some people think is monstrous).

IMO.

Does anyone know what time this meeting was supposed to start? Arriving at 6:45 am seems a bit early. Was BT there early because he was supposed to meet someone before the conference started?

 

[KaylynnCouture]

In the photos in the hostel (not the cab) he looks to be wearing something around his neck, which he pulled down for the ID check pulled up to act as a mask. It’s not a surgical mask.

The question may have been asked flirtatiously or not but the if the hostel has rules about not accepting locals, they’ll ask to see ID and if they do that, they’ll need to see the face match the ID.

Would they consider NJ local? I'd imagine so, but just checking.

 

[KaylynnCouture]

Does anyone know what time this meeting was supposed to start? Arriving at 6:45 am seems a bit early. Was BT there early because he was supposed to meet someone before the conference started?

8:00 AM.

https://www.cnbc.com/2024/12/04/unitedhealth-cancels-investor-day-after-reports-of-executive-shot-in-manhattan.html

 

[sfinkz]

The tip leading to the perp came early on and from the hostel, no? Though undoubtedly a busy, boisterous place, the masked pe#1 caught the attention of staff. Why? The bike. Always had gut feeling—from first radio report of ‘suspect seen running across alley and fleeing on e-bike towards CP’—that the bike was critical.
Not because, where is it now? (That, I believe, is the only unplanned aspect, the perp hoping it would be stolen and maybe lucky).
First, because of the time/effort to secure it for even one hour in the alley in pre-dawn darkness to ensure it was available to be unsecured in the heat of the moment without leaving trace (the Monopoly money surely mentioned but since the heavy object not a gun, the bike lock perhaps?)
Later, mistakenly reported perp rode F car sans bike, leading me to speculate an accomplice planted it.
Now—whether acting alone or as part of an emergent underground collective of hackers/killers/idealists—the bike figured in the dry runs prior to the crime.
At some point during his 10-day junket, the perp acquired the bike. Don’t feel the mystery man hung around the hostel much, instead surveying the field.
Leaving early am, returning late (why his reser was auto-cancelled) but nevertheless attracting attention from staff, grudgingly allowing entrance to whatever semi-secured area such machines are allowed.
Thus, when the first reports aired of ‘suspect fled on e-bike’ staff figured musta been that masked guy we’ve been accommodating, last @ 5:30 this morning.
From there, easy for investigators to roll back his 23:00 11/24 arrival at hostel to a point of entry earlier that evening, rather than over a period of several days.
And from PA42nd to eventual crime scene, to hostel, departure/arrival point for all ten days with—speculating—100 hours tracked on cctv?
Regardless, faceless to 10 million NewYorkers but triggering a response from the handful of hostel employees, the only ones interacting with him on a personal level.

 

[wibbleflea]

Would they consider NJ local? I'd imagine so, but just checking.

People here have said some hostels have rules about distance from home address to hostel. I don’t know the rules for this one. Good question.

 

[Sakura2Sophia4Lucia]

Does anyone know what time this meeting was supposed to start? Arriving at 6:45 am seems a bit early. Was BT there early because he was supposed to meet someone before the conference started?

Believe the meeting started at 8 am.
JMO

 

[RobSA]

Does anyone know what time this meeting was supposed to start? Arriving at 6:45 am seems a bit early. Was BT there early because he was supposed to meet someone before the conference started?

Breakfast? Which is funny considering your username.

 

[Sakura2Sophia4Lucia]

People here have said some hostels have rules about distance from home address to hostel. I don’t know the rules for this one. Good question.

Often the rule is 75 miles.
JMO