Detectives investigating the murder of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson have examined the bicycle route his killer used to flee the scene, but one key detail remains in dispute.
Officers investigating the early morning shooting of Thompson, 50, initially believed the assailant had fled on an electric Citi Bike near the Hilton Hotel in Manhattan.
The New York Times reported that officers gathered at the nearby bike-share kiosk early this afternoon and asked doormen for video footage from the station.
Police had said in their first assignment that the killer escaped to Central Park on an electric bicycle and released an image of the suspect on a bicycle after the shooting.
That scenario was called into question Wednesday afternoon when a spokesperson for the bike-sharing operator Lyft said law enforcement officials informed them it was not from their fleet.
Sources have now said this CNN that they have surveillance footage of the suspect on Manhattan’s Upper West Side with an electric bicycle battery.
They told the outlet they believe the suspect took the subway to Midtown before the shooting and are investigating whether he already had a bicycle at the scene.
Footage of the shooting shows Thompson walking alone outside the downtown hotel entrance when the gunman steps into view and opens fire.
The masked killer pulls out a large pistol with a silencer and shoots him in the back, sending the CEO staggering down the street.
Police had said in their first preliminary statement that the killer escaped to Central Park on electric bicycle and released a photo of the suspect on a bicycle after the shooting, seen here
Officials have yet to determine a motive for the killing, but sources told ABC 7 they are investigating a possible grudge against the insurance company. Thompson is seen here in an undated photo.
The footage showed several bystanders witnessing the horror shooting, with a woman standing just feet away from the gunman when he opened fire.
Witnesses said the gunman waited outside the hotel for some time before the shooting, and that he knew which door Thompson would come out of before opening fire.
Newly appointed Police Chief Jessica Tisch said the gunman “appeared to be lurking for several minutes” before closing in on Thompson.
Surveillance footage from a nearby Starbucks shows the shooter inside the establishment prior to the incident.
Sources also told CNN that the man bought two power bars and a bottle of water from the coffee chain.
Authorities found a phone and a water bottle near the crime scene that they believe is the one he bought at Starbucks, and were able to offer them DNA.
Officials have not yet determined a motive for the killing, but sources said ABC-7 they investigate a possible grudge against the insurance company.
Tisch added, “Many people passed by the suspect, but he appeared to be waiting for his intended target,” saying it did not “appear to be a random act of violence.”
He was also caught on surveillance footage hanging out outside and appeared to be on the phone ten minutes before he opened fire The New York Times.
The masked killer pulls out a large pistol with a silencer and shoots him in the back, sending the CEO staggering down the street
Thompson was scheduled to speak at an investor meeting at the hotel Wednesday morning
Thompson was scheduled to speak at an investor meeting at the hotel Wednesday morning, where he would announce United Healthcare’s hugely profitable 2025 financial outlook, including projected revenues of more than $450 billion.
His plan was well known, and witnesses said the suspected shooter even knew which door Thompson would exit through before opening fire.
Still, the investor conference reportedly began without interruption at 8 a.m. on the second floor of the Hilton until news of the shooting began to circulate.
Without knowing it was Thompson who was hit, one participant told the group that “someone got shot outside.”
CEO of parent company United Healthgroup Andrew Witty is said to have stopped the meeting at the hotel just after 8am when he heard of the tragedy.
He told those gathered: “We are dealing with a very serious medical situation with one of our team members. As a result, I’m afraid we’ll have to end the event.”
A Hilton employee, who wished to remain anonymous, told DailyMail.com in the aftermath that staff were shocked by the public killing on their doorstep.
They said, ‘It’s strange that this is happening in this area. If this guy is doing it here with all those cameras and stuff, there must be something behind it.
“I mean, obviously there was, you’d have to be pretty crazy to do something like that.”
United is the largest health insurer in America in terms of market share. They have been the subject of activists’ protests for allegedly systematically denying patients care.
One such protest earlier this year led to the arrest of 11 people outside United Healthcare’s headquarters in Minnetonka, Minnesota.
The company made headlines in February after it was subjected to a cyber attack that cost $872 million.
Thompson’s wife, Paulette “Pauley” Thompson, 51, has said her husband had received “some threats” before his trip to New York.
Members of the New York Police Department’s Crime Scene Unit photograph bullets littering the sidewalk as they investigate the scene outside the Hilton Hotel
Surveillance footage from a nearby Starbucks shows the shooter inside the establishment prior to the incident.
“Actually, I don’t know, a lack of cover? I don’t know any details. All I know is that he said there were people threatening him,” she told NBC News.
Thompson was also investigated by the Justice Department for antitrust violations and charged with insider trading.
The department launched an investigation into whether the private company unfairly restricted competitors and had a monopoly.
He is survived by his wife and their two children who live in the family’s $1.5 million home in Maple Grove, Minnesota.
“We are shocked to hear about the senseless murder of our beloved Brian,” she told ABC 7 after her husband’s untimely death.
“Brian was an incredibly loving, generous, talented man who truly lived life to the fullest and touched so many lives,” she said.
“Most importantly, Brian was an incredibly loving father to our two sons and will be deeply missed.
“We appreciate your well wishes and ask for complete privacy as our family navigates this difficult time.”
Her sister Elena Reveiz told the New York Times that she was stunned by the news of her brother’s murder.
“He was a good person and I’m so sad,” she said, describing Thompson as a good father to his two children.