Police Release Photos Of Suspected Killer Of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson

Meanwhile, the investigation is still ongoing, and the NYPD is offering a $10,000 reward for information.

8:10am: The suspect who shot and killed UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson outside a Midtown hotel may have left a message about the bullet he used to kill the executive, police officials said Wednesday morning. This was revealed by a police official.

New York City police are investigating mysterious messages that appear to include the words “reject,” “resign,” and “defend” carved into live bullets and shell casings left behind by the gunman after he shot Thompson several times.

The words are believed to be very similar to a 2010 book in which Mr Thompson criticized the insurance industry, one of its most powerful leaders.

“delay, deny, defend”—Two of the three words that appear to remain are subtitled “Why Insurance Companies Don’t Pay Claims and What You Can Do About It.”

Police said they recovered three live 9mm rounds and three ejected shell casings in front of the Hilton Hotel in Manhattan, where Thompson was scheduled to host an investor conference that morning.

Several pieces of evidence contained individual words, people said, indicating the gunman may have been trying to leave a message as investigators piece together a motive.

The masked gunman was using a silencer and appeared to be an experienced gunman, according to surveillance footage that made waves on social media.

Mr. Thompson was seen waiting for his target, a CEO who makes about $9.9 million a year, outside a luxury hotel before firing several shots at close range, causing Mr. Thompson to stumble and fall.

The gun was jammed, but the methodical gunman unlocked it and continued firing while Thompson tried to crawl away helplessly, footage and sources said.

He then ran into an alley, jumped on his electric bike and headed north along Sixth Avenue into Central Park, where surveillance cameras showed patchy footage, police said.

Although the suspect fled, he left behind clues that helped investigators identify him.

Before the murder, he bought coffee, a water bottle and two Power Bars at a nearby Starbucks and threw the bottles and coffee cups in the trash, but police removed them from the garbage for evidence.

Investigators also found a phone believed to belong to the suspect in an alley near the Hilton. Investigators obtained a search warrant to thoroughly examine the contents of the phone.

The new evidence could also help authorities decide whether to turn the assassination-style hit into a movie.

“Based on the evidence we have so far, it appears that the victim was specifically targeted,” NYPD Chief of Detectives Joe Kenney said at an earlier news conference. “But at this point we don't know why. This does not appear to be a random act of violence.”

Mr. Thompson's role helped him lead the country's largest private health insurance company, which has a controversial history of denying customer claims and is facing a Justice Department antitrust investigation.

Police said the CEO was shot and rushed to Mount Sinai West Hospital, where he was pronounced dead at 7:12 a.m.

His wife, Paulette “Paulie” Thompson, 51, said her family had received threats before her husband was killed.

“There have been some threats,” she said. NBC News. “Basically I don't know, is there a lack of reporting? I don't know the details. All I know is that he said there were people threatening him. That’s all.”

Thompson was well-respected in his field and was a husband and father of two sons in Minnesota.

The search for the suspect is ongoing and the NYPD is offering a $10,000 reward for information.

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