Breaking News: Search for shooter who killed UnitedHealthcare CEO enters third day
The investigation and search for the masked shooter who hunted down and killed the head of UnitedHealthcare entered his third day. Possible leads emerged regarding his travel before the shooting and a message scrawled on ammunition found at the crime scene.
Here is the last one:
Investigators learned the man pulled down his mask at the hostel’s front desk because he was flirting with the woman who checked him in, the law enforcement official said, leading to a photo of his face.
The woman told investigators that during that meeting, she asked to see his smile and he pulled down his mask, the official said.
The official was not authorized to discuss details of the ongoing investigation and spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity.
—Mike Balsamo
Those images include the New York subway, a law enforcement official said. At the establishments where the person was filmed, they always appeared to pay in cash, the official said.
The official was not authorized to discuss details of the ongoing investigation and spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity.
—Mike Balsamo
Medica, a Minnesota-based nonprofit healthcare company that serves 1.5 million customers in 12 states, announced the temporary closure of its six locations.
The company has offices in Minnesota, Wisconsin, Nebraska and North Dakota and employs approximately 3,000 people. Employees will work from home, Medica spokesman Greg Bury said in an email Friday.
“The safety of Medica employees is our top priority and we have enhanced the safety of all of our employees,” a Medica statement said. “While we have not received any specific threats regarding our campuses, our office buildings will be temporarily closed out of an abundance of caution.”
Bury also said biographical information about the company’s executives had been removed from its website as a precaution.
Insurer cited fatal shooting of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson in its announcement regarding the December 12 event.
“All of us at Centene are deeply saddened by the passing of Brian Thompson and want to express our support to everyone affected. Health insurance is a big industry and a small community; many CenTeam members have crossed paths with Brian during their careers,” said Sarah M. London, CEO of Centene, in a press release. “He was a person with a deep sense of empathy and a real passion for improving access to care. Our thoughts are with his family and colleagues during this difficult time.
Centene Corp. has grown in recent years to become the largest insurer of Medicaid, the state and federally funded program that covers care for low-income people. Insurers manage Medicaid coverage for states, and Centene has more than 13 million people enrolled in that coverage.
The insurance company also said it was working to keep employees safe and assist investigators.
“While our hearts are broken, we have been touched by the overwhelming outpouring of kindness and support in the hours following this horrific crime,” the company said.
But he said Friday he was confident police would arrest the shooter.
“We are well on our way to apprehending him and bringing him to justice,” Adams told WPIX television station.
He later removed their names and biographies entirely.
Police and federal agents have been collecting information from Greyhound to try to identify the suspect and are working to determine whether he purchased the ticket to New York in late November, a law enforcement official said.
Investigators were also trying to obtain additional information from a cell phone recovered from a pedestrian square through which the shooter fled.
The fatal shooting of Brian Thompson as he walked alone on a New York sidewalk has highlighted the widely varying approaches companies take to protect their executives from threats.
Experts say the current political, economic and technological climate will only make it even more difficult to assess threats to leaders and take steps to protect them.
Some organizations have a protective intelligence group that uses digital tools such as machine learning or artificial intelligence to scour online comments to detect threats not only on social media platforms such as also on the dark web, explains Komendat. They research what is said about the company, its employees and its leaders to uncover risks.
▶ Learn more about the steps companies take to protect their leadership
Police said Thursday they found a water bottle and a protein bar wrapper in a trash can near the scene of the ambush and believe the suspect purchased them at a Starbucks minutes before the shooting. The items were being tested by the city medical examiner.
