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MANHATTAN (CN) — Brian Thompson, the chief executive officer of insurance giant UnitedHealthcare, was fatally shot Wednesday morning outside the Midtown Manhattan hotel where the company was holding its annual investor conference.
Thompson, 50, was shot in the chest and back shortly before the meeting at the New York Hilton on Sixth Avenue between 53rd Street and 54th Street, the New York Police Department confirmed at a news conference.
NYPD Chief of Detectives Joseph Kenny said the shooting does not appear to be a random act of violence and is being investigated as a possibly premeditated, targeted attack.
“It does appear that the victim was specifically targeted," he said at the news conference.
The shooter was not immediately caught.
Surveillance video shows the suspect, wearing a black face mask, shooting Thompson from behind at point blank range with a handgun, then fleeing the scene first on foot into Midtown and then on an electric Citi Bike toward Central Park.
Andrew Witty, chief executive officer of parent company UnitedHealth Group, canceled the Fortune 500 company’s investor day conference after learning of Thompson’s shooting.
UnitedHealth Group confirmed Thompson’s death in a statement, saying they were working with the NYPD in its investigation.
“We are deeply saddened and shocked at the passing of our dear friend and colleague Brian Thompson, the CEO of UnitedHealthcare," the company wrote. “Brian was a highly respected colleague and friend to all who worked with him.”
Thompson was named chief executive officer for UnitedHealthcare in April 2021.
He previously served as CEO of UnitedHealthcare government programs including Medicare & Retirement and Community & State. He joined the corporation in 2004.
Minnesota Governor Tim Walz issued a statement on Wednesday calling the homicide “horrifying news and a terrible loss for the business and health care community in Minnesota.”
The Minnesota-based health care giant UnitedHealth’s efforts to expand and take over competition have repeatedly drawn scrutiny from federal regulators.
Earlier this year, the Department of Justice brought antitrust claims against the company over its proposed $3.3 billion acquisition of competing home health and hospice services provider Amedisys.
Two years earlier, the feds sued to block UnitedHealth Group’s $13 billion deal to acquire health technology company Change Healthcare.
Thompson’s shooting in midtown Manhattan occurred several blocks from Rockefeller Center, where the lighting of iconic Christmas tree was scheduled for later Wednesday night.
The NYPD is offering up to $10,000 for information on Thompson’s shooting.
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