"Shameless attack"

Attacker ‘made sure’ manager was dead

Footage from a surveillance camera shows both the attack and the assailant's escape.

(Bild: APA/AP)

More and more information points to a targeted attack on the managing director of a US insurance company in the middle of Manhattan. Footage from several surveillance cameras has now been released. They show the fatal shots fired at 50-year-old Brian Thompson and the attacker fleeing on an e-bike.

The assassin had ambushed the manager of the billion-dollar company, who was on his way to an investor press conference at the Hilton Hotel, and immediately opened fire.

On the move without bodyguards
After hitting him in the back, the masked person wanted to "make sure" that Thompson would die, according to the investigators. The suspect therefore fired further shots at his victim at close range. According to reports, a gun with a silencer was used. The New York Police Department (NYPD) confirmed the death of the 50-year-old, who ran UnitedHealthcare, in a press conference. Thompson, who lived in the US state of Minnesota, had been traveling without bodyguards.

Brian Thompson

(Bild: APA/AFP/United Health Group)

"Shameless, targeted attack"
It was a "very well-prepared" act with "a clear objective", a former high-ranking FBI official told the news channel CNN. The police also said in a press conference that the perpetrator was apparently able to quickly clear a jam. "You learn that at a police academy. I learned that at an FBI academy. You also learn this in the army," the expert emphasized to CNN. NYPD chief Jessica Tisch spoke of a "brazenly targeted attack".

The attacker used a gun with a silencer, according to police. This picture was taken in a Starbucks store before the attack.

(Bild: APA/AP)

Footage from a surveillance camera shows both the attack and the assailant's escape.

(Bild: APA/AP)

While the manhunt for the suspect, for whom a bounty of 10,000 US dollars (around 9500 euros) has been offered, is in full swing, the company of the man killed and his relatives are in shock. "We are deeply saddened and shocked by the death of our dear friend and colleague Brian Thompson," said a statement from the United Health Group, one of the largest insurance companies in the USA, to which United Healthcare belongs. "Brian was a highly respected colleague and friend to all who worked with him."

Flags fly at half-mast outside UnitedHealthcare's headquarters in Minnetonka.

(Bild: AP/Jerry Holt/Minneosta Star Tribune)

Wife: "He was recently threatened several times"
"We are devastated. Brian was an incredibly loving father to our two sons and we miss him dearly. He was a very talented and generous man who touched the lives of many people. We greatly appreciate the expressions of grief, but ask that our privacy be respected during this difficult time," the victim's grieving wife told CNN.

In an interview with NBC News, she said there had been "several threats" against Thompson recently. "I don't know the details, but he said there were some people who were threatening him," the widow said.

It does not look as if it was a "random act of violence", said New York Mayor Eric Adams. However, there was initially no information about a motive.