{"id":814698,"date":"2024-12-25T02:19:41","date_gmt":"2024-12-25T08:19:41","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/2024\/12\/25\/ceo-of-major-u-s-health-insurance-company-shot-dead-in-nyc-by-attacker-who-waited-for-him-police-say\/"},"modified":"2024-12-25T02:19:41","modified_gmt":"2024-12-25T08:19:41","slug":"ceo-of-major-u-s-health-insurance-company-shot-dead-in-nyc-by-attacker-who-waited-for-him-police-say","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/2024\/12\/25\/ceo-of-major-u-s-health-insurance-company-shot-dead-in-nyc-by-attacker-who-waited-for-him-police-say\/","title":{"rendered":"CEO of major U.S. health insurance company shot dead in NYC by attacker who waited for him, police say"},"content":{"rendered":"
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World<\/span><\/a><\/span><\/p>\n

UnitedHealthcare CEO shot dead in New York by attacker who waited for him, police say<\/h2>\n

Police are still searching for the gunman who killed the head\u00a0of a major American health insurance company in New York on Wednesday in what the city’s top officer described as a\u00a0“brazen targeted attack.”<\/p>\n

Brian Thompson, 50, was killed on his way into Hilton hotel for investors conference<\/h2>\n
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Rhianna Schmunk<\/a><\/span> \u00b7 <\/span>CBC News<\/p>\n

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\"A<\/p>

This image provided by the New York City Police Department shows the person sought in the killing of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson outside a Manhattan hotel on Wednesday. (Submitted by the New York City Police Department\/The Associated Press)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
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Police are still searching for the gunman who killed the head\u00a0of a major American health insurance company in New York on Wednesday in what the city’s top officer described as a\u00a0“brazen targeted attack.”<\/p>\n

Brian Thompson, head of UnitedHealthcare, was shot dead as he walked into the Hilton hotel in midtown Manhattan just before 6:45 a.m. ET. Police said the attacker\u00a0had been waiting for Thompson, who was\u00a0heading to the hotel for the\u00a0company’s annual investors\u00a0conference.\u00a0<\/p>\n

“This does not appear to be a random act of violence,” New York City Police Commissioner Jessica\u00a0Tisch\u00a0said at a news\u00a0conference on Wednesday.<\/p>\n

“At this time, every indication is this was a premeditated, preplanned, targeted attack.”<\/p>\n

The police department’s chief of detectives, Joseph Kenny, said\u00a0the\u00a0shooter got to the hotel about five minutes before Thompson, who had been staying in another hotel across the street. Standing along the building’s edge, the gunman let several people pass by unharmed before opening fire on the businessman.<\/p>\n

WATCH | Video shows gunman waiting for Thompson:\u00a0<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n

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The seconds before CEO fatally shot in NYC<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

A video obtained by CNN shows an assailant pointing a gun at UnitedHealthCare CEO Brian Thompson on a sidewalk in New York City on Wednesday. Thompson died after what police said seemed to be a ‘targeted’ shooting.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

Security footage obtained by CBC News showed the\u00a0gun malfunctioned, but\u00a0the\u00a0shooter cleared\u00a0the jam. The gunman\u00a0also ignored a\u00a0witness in the video, who escaped from\u00a0just a metre or two away.\u00a0<\/p>\n

“Based on the evidence we have so far, it does appear that the victim was specifically targeted, but at this point, we do not know why,” Kenny said.<\/p>\n

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The assailant escaped on foot before switching to an electric bike,\u00a0and was last seen on video riding into Central Park at 6:48 a.m., the officer said.<\/p>\n

Police initially said the shooter rode into the park on a bicycle from CitiBike, the bike-share program. But a spokesperson for the program’s operator, Lyft, said police officials informed the company Wednesday afternoon that the bike was not from the CitiBike fleet.<\/p>\n

Thompson, 50,\u00a0was pronounced dead at Roosevelt Hospital at 7:12 a.m.<\/p>\n

Kenny said the executive\u00a0did not appear to have a security detail and did not seem to realize he was in danger. The footage of the shooting does\u00a0not have sound, he\u00a0said, so officers didn’t yet know whether the shooter\u00a0said anything to him.<\/p>\n

Victim called a ‘highly respected colleague’<\/h2>\n

UnitedHealth is the largest U.S. health insurer, providing benefits to tens of millions of Americans, who pay more for health care than those in any other country.<\/p>\n

The company has been grappling with the fallout from a massive data hack of\u00a0its Change Healthcare unit<\/a>\u00a0that provides technology for U.S. health providers, disrupting medical care for patients and reimbursement to doctors for months.<\/p>\n

WATCH | Police commissioner’s full remarks:\u00a0<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n

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Health insurance CEO shot dead in ‘brazen targeted attack,’ police say<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

New York City police Commissioner Jessica Tisch said Brian Thompson, 50, was shot dead in what appears to be ‘a premeditated, preplanned, targeted attack’ in Manhattan.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

UnitedHealth Group chief executive Andrew Witty took the stage about one hour after the conference\u00a0started Wednesday and\u00a0announced the rest of the program would be cancelled.<\/p>\n

“We’re dealing with a very serious medical situation with one of our team members, and as a result, I’m afraid we’re going to have to bring to a close the event today,” he said.<\/p>\n

Thompson, who lived in Minnesota, had been in the city since Monday.\u00a0He had served as CEO for more than three years and started\u00a0with the company in\u00a02004.\u00a0<\/p>\n

“Brian was a highly respected colleague and friend to all who worked with him. We are working closely with the New York Police Department and ask for your patience and understanding during this difficult time,” read a social media post<\/a>\u00a0from UnitedHealth Group.<\/p>\n

“Our hearts go out to Brian’s family and all who were close to him.”<\/p>\n

Police said they are still working to determine a motive.<\/p>\n

Thompson’s wife, Paulette Thompson, told NBC News<\/a> that her husband told her “there were some people that had been threatening him.” She didn’t have details but suggested the threats may have involved issues with insurance coverage.<\/p>\n

Eric Werner, the police chief in the Minneapolis suburb where Thompson lived, said his department had not received any reports of threats against the executive.\u00a0<\/p>\n

The Hilton is in a bustling part of Manhattan, a short walk from tourist sites such as the Museum of Modern Art and Rockefeller Center. It’s\u00a0often dense with tourists and office workers on weekday mornings.<\/p>\n

Police said the shooting would not affect the annual Christmas tree lighting at Rockefeller Center\u00a0\u2014\u00a0a few blocks from the Hilton \u2014 which\u00a0went ahead<\/a>\u00a0as scheduled Wednesday evening amid a stepped-up police presence.<\/p>\n

Part of the block where the shooting took place was cordoned off with police tape, with a large contingent of police officers at the scene.\u00a0<\/p>\n

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\"Wide<\/p>

Police officers gather outside the Hilton hotel after the shooting. Thompson, 50, was shot on his way into the hotel before the company’s annual investors meeting. (Spencer Platt\/Getty Images)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n

Minnesota Gov. Tim\u00a0Walz\u00a0said the state is “sending our prayers to Brian’s family and the\u00a0UnitedHealthcare\u00a0team.”<\/p>\n

“This is horrifying news and a terrible loss for the business and health-care community in Minnesota,” Walz wrote on X, formerly Twitter.<\/p>\n

UnitedHealthcare\u00a0is the largest provider of Medicare Advantage plans in the U.S. and manages health insurance coverage for employers, as well as Medicaid programs funded by the state and federal governments.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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ABOUT THE AUTHOR<\/h2>\n
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Rhianna Schmunk is a senior writer covering domestic and international affairs at CBC News. Her work over the past decade has taken her across North America, from the Canadian Rockies to Washington, D.C. She routinely covers the Canadian courts, with a focus on precedent-setting civil cases. You can send story tips to rh*************<\/span>@*<\/span>bc.ca<\/span>.<\/p>\n