NY - UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson fatally shot in Midtown.

[Boodles]

I think we can assume he was staying nearby and the walk was not far.

jmo

I’m wondering where he was staying and at which entrance of the Hilton this occurred. The blue jacket kind of stands out in midtown Manhattan. Maybe he wasn’t wearing an overcoat because he had a short walk from where he was staying (and he’s from Minnesota so weather was NBD?).

 

[Inthedetails]

I agree, primarily because the shooting happened outside one of the side entrances to the Hilton and not the main entrance on 6th Avenue. The shooter could have easily learned that the investors' day gathering was taking place at the Hilton from public sources, but MOO he could not have known Brian would enter the building from that specific side entrance without inside intel.

Your comment makes me wonder if there was someone else posted at other entrances just in case he entered another way. I don't think that happened, but I'm going to keep that idea in my back pocket.

jmo

 

[Inthedetails]

I don't know if this will get solved IF this was a hired hit.
I think back to a case in my area some years ago, where a prominent attorney involved in a major contentious corporate case, was assassinated in his driveway. A quiet cul de sac, one way in and out, no vehicles or persons detected on cameras, no noise. Killer had presumably hiked up the canyon in the back. It was never solved.
But circumstances and environment were different of course, and here it does seem there were mistakes.

And NYPD is on it. Might not be instant, but I think this case will be solved.


jmo

 

[Warwick1991]

You can legally pack one if it’s legal to own one in a state that allows it. Technically it has to be legal in the state you’re traveling to as well, but they don’t check that.

You would have to declare the gun and the suppressor, which they check to make sure is secured properly (locked box). This then goes in your checked luggage.

Personally, I do think he is fairly local (New York, New Jersey, Connecticut), and traveled via car.

Unless the shooter obtained everything - pistol, ammunition, suppressor/silencer - privately, I don't think he's local. New York and New Jersey have laws that greatly restrict gun ownership. Connecticut followed with restrictions after Newtown. New York prohibits suppressors. In New Jersey they are restricted mainly to LE.

The shooter would need to practice regularly, not easy if he possessed his firearms illegally with regard to state laws.

 

[MassGuy]

Per CNN, a water bottle was found identical to the one shooter bought at Starbucks with 2 power bars. Possible dna may be found on it.

Damn I missed the beginning, John Miller is the best when it comes to this stuff.

“CEO coming out of a divorce…”

I don’t believe that’s connected, but it does add another avenue.

 

[Periwinkl3]

I agree, primarily because the shooting happened outside one of the side entrances to the Hilton and not the main entrance on 6th Avenue. The shooter could have easily learned that the investors' day gathering was taking place at the Hilton from public sources, but MOO he could not have known Brian would enter the building from that specific side entrance without inside intel.

Maybe there were other potential shooters waiting at other exit doors.

 

[BUF]

“CEO coming out of a divorce…”

I caught that too. First I’ve heard of that.

 

[MassGuy]

Unless the shooter obtained everything - pistol, ammunition, suppressor/silencer - privately, I don't think he's local. New York and New Jersey have laws that greatly restrict gun ownership. Connecticut followed with restrictions after Newtown. New York prohibits suppressors. In New Jersey they are restricted mainly to LE.

The shooter would need to practice regularly, not easy if he possessed his firearms illegally with regard to state laws.

That suppressor wouldn’t be all that hard to obtain. It could have even been homemade, or not designed for his weapon (explaining the jams).

He could probably easily communicate with someone secretly on any gun forum, and have one mailed to him.

 

[Inthedetails]

Unless the shooter obtained everything - pistol, ammunition, suppressor/silencer - privately, I don't think he's local. New York and New Jersey have laws that greatly restrict gun ownership. Connecticut followed with restrictions after Newtown. New York prohibits suppressors. In New Jersey they are restricted mainly to LE.

The shooter would need to practice regularly, not easy if he possessed his firearms illegally with regard to state laws.

Well, let's put on our thinking caps. If this is a hired hit, the person who paid for the hit might be a person of means who could have private property where target practice could happen.

I am NOT suggesting that happened, just keeping my mind open to every possibility at this point. I'm not willing to rule out anything just yet.

I don't know if the shooter is local, but he definitely had local intel and/or researched the city to know to head to Central Park. imo

jmopinion

 

[Curiousobserver]

That suppressor wouldn’t be all that hard to obtain. It could have even been homemade, or not designed for his weapon (explaining the jams).

He could probably easily communicate with someone secretly on any gun forum, and have one mailed to him.

You can 3d print them-

 

[airportwoman]

Damn I missed the beginning, John Miller is the best when it comes to this stuff.

“CEO coming out of a divorce…”

I don’t believe that’s connected, but it does add another avenue.

Maybe another one. The victim's wife issued a statement (unless the wedding was recent, but they also have two teenagers and I got the impression that she is their mother).

 

[citizen_sleuth]

https://www.cnn.com/2024/12/04/us/brian-thompson-united-healthcare-death/index.html

<snipped & BBM>
The leadership team at UnitedHealth Group is supported by an in-house security team, including at the New York conference, a source familiar with the company's security said. Thompson's security detail was not with him when the early morning shooting occurred.

[...]

Officials said the assailant stepped from behind a car onto the sidewalk, ignored other people and shot the victim from behind.

[...]

Thompson, who was visiting from Minnesota, was shot with a weapon that appeared to be outfitted with a silencer, according to a law enforcement official.

 

[Warwick1991]

That suppressor wouldn’t be all that hard to obtain. It could have even been homemade, or not designed for his weapon (explaining the jams).

He could probably easily communicate with someone secretly on any gun forum, and have one mailed to him.

It's possible he didn't get his suppressor from conventional channels, but his pistol and ammunition have to be obtained somewhere. Ammunition is restricted in New York, too. You can't buy it online and have it delivered to your home.

It's possible that he obtained everything under the table, but I think he traveled from somewhere else where he could buy what he wanted with relative ease. He could have traveled by car from anywhere. JMO

 

[ATaco]

Unless the shooter obtained everything - pistol, ammunition, suppressor/silencer - privately, I don't think he's local. New York and New Jersey have laws that greatly restrict gun ownership. Connecticut followed with restrictions after Newtown. New York prohibits suppressors. In New Jersey they are restricted mainly to LE.

The shooter would need to practice regularly, not easy if he possessed his firearms illegally with regard to state laws.

If you’re killing someone in this manner, you’re not concerned about the legality of a silencer.

 

[Torbs]

if it was someone seeking revenge for a specific coverage denial they probably have a name or names of people who have been over the top towards the company. you don’t just jump from coverage denial to murder the CEO at investor day, there would be interim escalations with your identity attached. That person probably couldn’t afford a hitman, either. That leads me to believe it’s some broader attack on the company’s ethics in general or a totally unrelated domestic situation (ripe for murder for hire.)

Which leads me to one thing not mentioned upthread: UHC has been embroiled in a massive ransomware attack for months. It’s cost them almost a billion dollars. The perpetrators are non us criminal organizations (Eastern Europe, eg Russia) and I believe the DoJ is offering 10M to identify them. Perhaps this is related somehow to that conflict? Don’t mess with us, we mean business?

 

[whitelilac]

Detectives believe shooter was an experienced marksman, police officials say​

From CNN's John Miller
Detectives believe the suspect in the shooting of the UnitedHealthcare CEO operated slowly, deliberately, and in a way that suggested he was experienced marksman, according to police officials speaking to CNN on the condition of anonymity because of the ongoing investigation.

Firearms experts who have studied the video say it appears that the gun malfunctioned with each shot. “Jamming” refers to the gun not loading another bullet into the chamber after its fired. The gunman is seeing racking the slide back to clear the “jam” and load another round.

He reacts in the way that someone with firearms training from law enforcement or the military would be trained to react to such an issue.
more: https://www.cnn.com/us/live-news/un...son-death-12-04-24/index.html?t=1733359256796

 

[MassGuy]

Police found a water bottle and a phone in a nearby alley after the shooting, officials say​

From CNN's John Miller
Police officials described some of the clues they are working with as they try to put a name and a face to the person behind the mask who killed UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson in Manhattan on Wednesday morning.

Investigators, speaking on the condition of anonymity because of the ongoing nature of the investigation, told CNN that as the suspect crossed the street after the shooting, he may have dropped vital clues.

Detectives believe a phone found in the alley the gunman ran through may have belonged to the shooter. Police also found a bottle of water that detectives believe the gunman purchased just minutes before the shooting at a Starbucks around the corner.

One senior police official said video from the Starbucks shows the man, barely visible under a black hood and wearing a surgical mask, buying two power bars and a bottle of water.

The phone could yield fingerprints or DNA, and if police technicians can unlock the phone, it may offer the suspects identity. Even if it is a “burner phone” it could give investigators more information about communications and searches before the shooting.

The water bottle may also offer DNA, according to investigators. Two pieces of evidence police are still searching for are the gun and the bicycle the gunman used to flee.

https://www.cnn.com/us/live-news/unitedhealthcare-brian-thompson-death-12-04-24/index.html?t=1733359256796

 

[Inthedetails]

if it was someone seeking revenge for a specific coverage denial they probably have a name or names of people who have been over the top towards the company. you don’t just jump from coverage denial to murder the CEO at investor day, there would be interim escalations with your identity attached. That person probably couldn’t afford a hitman, either. That leads me to believe it’s some broader attack on the company’s ethics in general or a totally unrelated domestic situation (ripe for murder for hire.)

Which leads me to one thing not mentioned upthread: UHC has been embroiled in a massive ransomware attack for months. It’s cost them almost a billion dollars. The perpetrators are non us criminal organizations (Eastern Europe, eg Russia) and I believe the DoJ is offering 10M to identify them. Perhaps this is related somehow to that conflict?

To put an MSM link to that info:

"The February hack at UnitedHealth's (UNH.N), opens new tab tech unit Change affected the personal information of 100 million people, the U.S. health department's website showed, making it the largest healthcare data breach in the country.

UnitedHealth has previously said that hackers potentially stole a third of Americans' data in one of the worst hacks to hit the U.S. healthcare sector. The company began notifying affected patients in June....

The Change unit was breached by a hacking group called ALPHV, also known as 'BlackCat.' UnitedHealth first reported the breach on Feb. 21."

https://www.reuters.com/technology/cybersecurity/hack-unitedhealths-tech-unit-impacted-100-mln-people-2024-10-24/

 

[Inthedetails]

duplicate, dbm

 

[jimg77]

Unless the shooter obtained everything - pistol, ammunition, suppressor/silencer - privately, I don't think he's local. New York and New Jersey have laws that greatly restrict gun ownership. Connecticut followed with restrictions after Newtown. New York prohibits suppressors. In New Jersey they are restricted mainly to LE.

The shooter would need to practice regularly, not easy if he possessed his firearms illegally with regard to state laws.

JMO - I don't think it would be very difficult to make a suppressor. All you would need is some basic metalworking equipment and off the shelf metal round stock or piping.

I don't understand the need for the silencer here. I'd rather have a reliable gun, it's not like this was happening indoors and didn't want others to hear. They really don't silence all that much anyway. JMO