Investigators found shell casings with the words “deny,” “defend” and “depose” written on them at the scene where a gunman shot UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson dead outside a New York City hotel early Wednesday morning, Dec. 4, a senior law enforcement official told NBC News.
A manhunt remains ongoing for the unidentified shooter, with three senior law enforcement sources telling NBC News that authorities are tracking down several good leads.
New York Police Department detectives are aware of a book written about the health insurance business with a similar title to the words written on the shell casings, but no conclusions can be drawn so far, a senior law enforcement official told NBC News.
A video of the shooting obtained by NBC News from a law enforcement official briefed on the investigation shows the gunman stepping out on the sidewalk and firing multiple rounds at Thompson from behind. The 50-year-old CEO, whom police say was walking to an investors conference at a midtown Manhattan hotel, was hit at least twice in his back and calf.
At one point, the video shows the gun appear to jam.
“It does seem that he’s proficient in the use of firearms, as he was able to clear the malfunctions pretty quickly,” NYPD Chief of Detectives Joseph Kenny said at a news conference Dec. 4.
The gunman is seen wearing a black hoodie, ski mask and gray backpack and waiting for Thompson for several minutes before firing at him.
“This does not appear to be a random act of violence,” NYPD Commissioner Jessica Tisch said at a news conference. “Every indication is that this was a premeditated, preplanned, targeted attack.”
Police arrived at the scene four minutes after the shooting, but the gunman had already fled on an e-bike toward Central Park, the NYPD said. The police department is offering a $10,000 reward for any information leading to the shooter’s arrest.
Authorities released photos of the gunman taken at a Starbucks before the shooting and another photo of him on a bike.
The NYPD also recovered additional video showing the person discarding two protein bars and a water bottle purchased at the Starbucks, which police picked up as evidence, a senior law enforcement official told NBC News.
NBC News security analyst Clint Watts, a former special agent with the FBI, said on TODAY on Dec. 5 that the gunman’s reconnaissance, ability to quickly clear the gun jam and the planned escape route could suggest “some professional sort of capability there.”
However, he also noted that the engravings on the shell casings, the purchases at the Starbucks across the street and getting caught on camera are “things that you just wouldn’t see from something that was a more professional sort of assassination attempt.”
“I think we just need a lot more evidence to understand which way it might go,” Watts said.
Thompson lived in Minnesota with his wife and their two teen sons. His wife, Paulette Thompson, told NBC News on Dec. 4 that “there had been some threats” made against her husband.
“Basically, I don’t know, a lack of coverage?” she said. “I don’t know details. I just know that he said there were some people that had been threatening him.”
She also spoke to NBC Minneapolis affiliate KARE about her family’s loss.
“Brian was a wonderful person with a big heart and who lived life to the fullest,” she said. “He will be greatly missed by everybody. Our hearts are broken and we are completely devastated by this news. He touched so many lives.”
UnitedHealth Group, which owns UnitedHealthcare, also released a statement.