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

[Deleted member 341776]

Honestly, the guy did a great job of hiding his identity considering how much press this case has gotten. Slipping up and showing his face so far has not led to an arrest, and there's no way this case is laying around forgotten on a desk.

 

[Janitor101]

If this truly was targeted, I wonder how the shooter even recognized the particular victim - the only video I've seen shows the shooter approached from behind. When did he have the opportunity to see the victim's face before the first shot?

Early on in the case I wondered this very same thing. Although his photo was most probably plastered on the UHC website, the photo could have been old and as we know, people age and change over time which would make it more difficult for a perp to positively identify the victim as quickly as he did on a dark street.

More and more, I'm beginning to think the perp had at least one accomplice. Someone posted inside the building who called the perp on his burner phone to alert him as to what the victim was wearing, and what exit door he was using.

 

[Marantz4250b]

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

It wasn't a B&T pistol. It was a regular semi-auto pistol with a sound moderator attached. You can see gasses venting from the ejection port when it discharges so the action is opening. The B&T pistol isn't semi-automatic, it's bolt-action, and needs to be manually cycled with each round. That pistol would never produce gas from the action. In fact, a regular semi-auto pistol shouldn't either.

I'm petty sure that it did that because the moderator wasn't properly fitted and was causing irregular operation of the gun. The moderator was almost certainly the reason it didn't function correctly meaning he had to mess about with it. Unlike the movies, fitting muzzle attachments to firearms isn't straightforward. This is especially the case with guns who's barrel moves on firing which they do in almost all pistols chambered for cartridges more powerful than .380 ACP. The mod adds too much weight to the barrel so the gun doesn't unlock or cycle properly.

 

[peas n carrots]

Fantastic way to travel

Hostelling International – Discover the real hostel experience

I stayed at a hostel in DC a few months ago. It was the cheapest accommodation I could find. The hostel had private and dorm rooms, and people of every strip from students to business people were staying there.

I’m guessing it’s likely the killer stayed there because a regular hotel stay in Manhattan would add up quickly, and the hostel was probably 1/3 of the cost. Some people are friendly and some keep to themselves at the hostel.

 

[krikken]

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

I think it was always stated at "5AM", not "5:00AM", and it was one of the first waypoints reported. The 5:30AM hostel checkout was reported much later. So maybe a lack of significant figures. I can see how it might have misled some into thinking that he had some pre-dawn rendezvous to meet a connection, when in fact he might have just passed that location on his way to midtown and been captured on camera. Maybe the battery was just believed to be in his bag during that journey, not that he was carrying a battery by the handle. (Not sure if there's a central thread that consolidates all existing multimedia in this case.)

 

[mrstfs]

I stayed at a hostel in DC a few months ago. It was the cheapest accommodation I could find. The hostel had private and dorm rooms, and people of every strip from students to business people were staying there.

I’m guessing it’s likely the killer stayed there because a regular hotel stay in Manhattan would add up quickly, and the hostel was probably 1/3 of the cost. Some people are friendly and some keep to themselves at the hostel.

My opinion is he stayed there because a regular hotel requires a credit card.

 

[nhmemorymaker]

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

Definitely not ignorance. Biggest question out there!

LE has referred to finding the treasure chest of facts from the hostel to be "the biggest clue" of the WHOLE case.
I really feel I saw it referred to as a TIP, but have not been able to re-find that reference to a TIP.
But I do think it was a tip, and the hostel worker knew she was identifying the shooter.

"They were having a flirtatious moment and he pulls it down and he gives a big smile and that one informal moment between two human beings remains at this moment the most significant clue to date in this whole case," former NYPD Deputy Commissioner for Intelligence and Counterterrorism John Miller said.

NYC hostel at center of UnitedHealthcare CEO shooting investigation: "The most significant clue to date"

An NYC hostel is now the focal point of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson's murder investigation, as police search for a person of interest.

www.cbsnews.com

Once they did have this tip or "clue" they could fit so many more details into the tapestry.
I would think that the hostel worker would feel quite vulnerable however, and my guess is that LE has bent over backwards to try to protect her now.

 

[Tortoise]

Did he walk around in the dorm, to and from the shower room, and go to bed with a hood on? Someone should have seen his hair at some point. An e-fit showing his hair or lack of, alongside the CCTV images, would be good.

He seems to me to have been overly cautious about hiding his hair, but not his eyes, yet hair is very easy to change.

Or was it perhaps to avoid hairs being found on clothing etc for DNA reasons.

 

[Inthedetails]

I do wonder whether BT assassin was hired by a politician or other shadowy groups who are lobbying for a cashless society. Take out one of America’s most senior business executives, pay cash for everything, more people keen for a cashless society.

The killer showed that someone can be killed with no trace left, huge numbers of people, even very high up want a cashless society where everything is paid for and leaves a digital trail, might explain the Monopoly money too

I also have been thinking about the Monopoly paper money and the assassin using paper money in the city.

I haven't landed on what I think the exact message of the Monopoly money is, but I have noticed the theme of "paper money" in this crime.

jmopinion

 

[DizzyB]

Is the taxi photo enough for a retinal scanner?

 

[Inthedetails]

I agree with you. There is very little discussion about this ebike particularly the early reports of him on CCTV carrying a battery. What does this mean? He discovered the ebike had a dead battery? If so, where would he have purchased a new battery? I assume if he purchased one it would have been traced back to a store and to the clerk who sold him the battery.

I think he stored the bike outside at night but didn't want to leave the battery with it, so took it inside.

jmo

 

[sds71]

Murdered CEO to be mourned at funeral as national manhunt for killer intensifies

UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson was shot dead in Manhattan last week, and authorities have yet to apprehend his killer.

www.nbcnewyork.com

 

[Tealgrove]

Although we see a lot planning here, it’s not outside the realm of possibility that he had some luck as well.

He arrived 10 days prior to the murder. What exactly was he doing for 10 days in preparation for the murder? 10 days is a long time.

So, he acquired a bike somehow.

He scoped out the Hilton as soon as he arrived.

Hatched his getaway plan. Practised it. Timed it. How many times?

Did he go to a firing range to practise? Did he have the gun when he arrived or did he acquire it upon arrival?

The witness in the car said he was there all night watching. Maybe that comment was taken out of context. Maybe has was there one whole night. Maybe the Monday night not the Tuesday night. He watched and waited. That’s when he saw BT walking from one hotel to the other on the Tuesday. Aha! Saw him walking alone. Saw him enter via the side door not the front door.

It was public knowledge about the Investors Meeting. The times were publicly known.

Killer shows up early knowing the direction that BT would be coming from. He lies in wait but BT is there within 5 minutes not 1/2 an hour. Lucky there as he made it there just in time. He does the deed and then is outta there.

It doesn’t have to be complicated. It doesn’t have to be a conspiracy.

Sometimes it comes down to luck.

MOO

 

[Inthedetails]

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.

The Frederick Douglass housing is very near the hostel, not 2.9 miles away. They are right there - easy walk.

jmo

 

[judithannegg]

Early on in the case I wondered this very same thing. Although his photo was most probably plastered on the UHC website, the photo could have been old and as we know, people age and change over time which would make it more difficult for a perp to positively identify the victim as quickly as he did on a dark street.

More and more, I'm beginning to think the perp had at least one accomplice. Someone posted inside the building who called the perp on his burner phone to alert him as to what the victim was wearing, and what exit door he was using.

I'm still on the theory that BT set up the murder himself. I think he was on the phone with the hitman as he was walking out "I'm walking out this door with a bright blue blazer on." I honestly have a lot of respect for the resources the NYPD and the FBI have, and to have this guy vanish without anyone knowing who or where he is is quite baffling. I think he must really be a professional hitman. This was a very thought out plan -- not an emotional, revenge filled guy.

 

[judithannegg]

Although we see a lot planning here, it’s not outside the realm of possibility that he had some luck as well.

He arrived 10 days prior to the murder. What exactly was he doing for 10 days in preparation for the murder? 10 days is a long time.

So, he acquired a bike somehow.

He scoped out the Hilton as soon as he arrived.

Hatched his getaway plan. Practised it. Timed it. How many times?

Did he go to a firing range to practise? Did he have the gun when he arrived or did he acquire it upon arrival?

The witness in the car said he was there all night watching. Maybe that comment was taken out of context. Maybe has was there one whole night. Maybe the Monday night not the Tuesday night. He watched and waited. That’s when he saw BT walking from one hotel to the other on the Tuesday. Aha! Saw him walking alone. Saw him enter via the side door not the front door.

It was public knowledge about the Investors Meeting. The times were publicly known.

Killer shows up early knowing the direction that BT would be coming from. He lies in wait but BT is there within 5 minutes not 1/2 an hour. Lucky there as he made it there just in time. He does the deed and then is outta there.

It doesn’t have to be complicated. It doesn’t have to be a conspiracy.

Sometimes it comes down to luck.

MOO

Or BT was the one on the phone with him as BT was walking out: "I'm walking out this door with a bright blue blazer on."

 

[Marantz4250b]

His choice of weapon was incredibly stupid, imo. Although I don't think he was totally clueless about firearms as he obviously know how to clear misfeeds.

Why was his choice stupid:

• A 9mm pistol is not easy to attach a moderator to - it must be done properly so that he gun operates properly. It obviously hadn't been as it didn't. There is no way he had shot that gun before, at least not with the mod on or he would have known it didn't work and would have chosen something else.
• The gun with the moderator was way bigger than it needed to be. Handguns are basically illegal in NYC and something that big would have greatly increased the risk of being caught with it.
• a .22rf, .25ACP or .308ACP would have been far more concealable and quiet enough not to need moderating.
• Most pistols in the above calibres are easy to attach a mod to as their barrels do not move on firing.
• The moderator wasn't needed. Shooting someone in the street is definitely going to get attention on you as there were always going to be people around so why bother? Indeed, the more noise the more likely people are going to flee so you can get away easier.
• All he needed was a tiny .22 pistol with a 10 round or so magazine so he could walk up behind him and empty it into him.

Given the above, my thoughts are that he is in no way a professional or acting for some higher power or foreign state sponsor. He's a Walt who thinks he's a master assassin who likely has a grudge (probably one which will seem trivial when we eventually learn what it is) against BT or his company. I doubt he had help planning or perpetrating this.

 

[nhmemorymaker]

My opinion is he stayed there because a regular hotel requires a credit card.

And the international / transient atmosphere to get lost in.

 

[m00c0w]

It wasn't a B&T pistol. It was a regular semi-auto pistol with a sound moderator attached. You can see gasses venting from the ejection port when it discharges so the action is opening. The B&T pistol isn't semi-automatic, it's bolt-action, and needs to be manually cycled with each round. That pistol would never produce gas from the action. In fact, a regular semi-auto pistol shouldn't either.

I'm petty sure that it did that because the moderator wasn't properly fitted and was causing irregular operation of the gun. The moderator was almost certainly the reason it didn't function correctly meaning he had to mess about with it. Unlike the movies, fitting muzzle attachments to firearms isn't straightforward. This is especially the case with guns who's barrel moves on firing which they do in almost all pistols chambered for cartridges more powerful than .380 ACP. The mod adds too much weight to the barrel so the gun doesn't unlock or cycle properly.

Fully agree. He was probably using a homemade or fuel filter suppressor that wasn’t properly fitted to the firearm. The cycling of the firearm and remedial actions being taken are not at all consistent with the B&T theory.

JMO

 

[m00c0w]

His choice of weapon was incredibly stupid, imo. Although I don't think he was totally clueless about firearms as he obviously know how to clear misfeeds.

Why was his choice stupid:

• A 9mm pistol is not easy to attach a moderator to - it must be done properly so that he gun operates properly. It obviously hadn't been as it didn't. There is no way he had shot that gun before, at least not with the mod on or he would have known it didn't work and would have chosen something else.
• The gun with the moderator was way bigger than it needed to be. Handguns are basically illegal in NYC and something that big would have greatly increased the risk of being caught with it.
• a .22rf, .25ACP or .308ACP would have been far more concealable and quiet enough not to need moderating.
• Most pistols in the above calibres are easy to attach a mod to as their barrels do not move on firing.
• The moderator wasn't needed. Shooting someone in the street is definitely going to get attention on you as there were always going to be people around so why bother? Indeed, the more noise the more likely people are going to flee so you can get away easier.
• All he needed was a tiny .22 pistol with a 10 round or so magazine so he could walk up behind him and empty it into him.

Given the above, my thoughts are that he is in no way a professional or acting for some higher power or foreign state sponsor. He's a Walt who thinks he's a master assassin who likely has a grudge (probably one which will seem trivial when we eventually learn what it is) against BT or his company. I doubt he had help planning or perpetrating this.

Exactly; it would have been trivial to walk up and use a .22 at close range. The shots would have probably been as loud (if not quieter) as the 9mm with whatever wacky suppressor he was using that clearly was just back-feeding all of the gas into the chamber.

You can even tell that while having some proficiency in firearms, he’s not actually that well-trained because of some pretty big issues with how he was clearing the malfunctions.

JMO