UnitedHealthcare CEO Killing: Full Timeline of Suspect’s Movements

It is now day four of the manhunt for the suspected killer of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson, who was fatally shot Wednesday morning in New York City.

Thompson, 50, was on his way to speak at UnitedHealth Group’s investor conference at the Hilton Hotel in Midtown Manhattan on Wednesday morning when he was shot and killed. He was struck at least once in the back and at least once in the right calf, New York City Police Department (NYPD) Commissioner Jessica Tisch said at a news conference.

Police are calling this a “premeditated, preplanned targeted attack” but the motive of the gunman is not yet known. Police are offering a reward of up to $10,000 for information that leads to an arrest.

Joseph Kenny, NYPD’s chief of detectives, provided new details about the suspect’s whereabouts before and after the shooting, which police have determined using surveillance footage.

Newsweek reached out to the NYPD via email late Saturday afternoon for any updates on the manhunt.

November 24: Suspect Arrives In New York

The suspect traveled on a bus that originated in Atlanta to New York, according to police. He arrived at the Port Authority Bus Terminal in Midtown Manhattan at around 10 p.m. local time on Sunday, Kenny said.

The suspect then grabs a cab to the vicinity of the Hilton Hotel where Thompson would later be killed. He stays in the vicinity of the hotel for roughly 30 minutes and then takes another cab to a hostel on the Upper West Side at around 11 p.m. local time.

November 29 & 30: Suspect Checks Out and Back in of Hostel

After a few days pass, the suspect checks out of the hostel, according to Kenny, who explained that the process is different from a hotel’s check-in and check-out process.

“It’s not your traditional check-in, check out. It’s the kind of thing where if you don’t show up at a certain time, they automatically just check you out,” Kenny said. “We don’t believe that he went someplace else. It’s more of an administrative checkout.”

The next day, the suspect checks back into the hostel.

Police were able to capture a clear photo of the suspect’s face from the hostel’s surveillance footage, but it’s unclear when during his stay the video was captured.

Wednesday, December 4: The Day of the Killing

It is unclear what the suspect did from November 30 to Wednesday. On Monday, December 2, Thompson arrived in New York City for the conference, according to Kenny.

5:30 a.m.

The suspect departs from the hostel, police say, possibly by bike.

5:41 a.m.

The suspect wandered around the vicinity of the Hilton Hotel.

“We have him wandering around, walking in the vicinity of hotel, walking on 54th Street, walking back and forth,” Kenny said.

6:17 a.m.

The suspect is seen at a Starbucks on Sixth Avenue, near the Hilton Hotel. The NYPD released images of the suspect at the Starbucks wearing a hooded jacket with his face mostly covered. He was carrying a backpack.

Images from Starbucks’ surveillance system show that the suspect bought a bottle of water and two energy bars, according to an unnamed law enforcement official cited by CNN.

6:19 a.m.

Surveillance footage appears to show the suspect briefly stopping by a pile of trash near a deli on West 55th Street.

6:30 a.m.

Surveillance footage appears to show the suspect on the phone while walking.

6:39 a.m.

The suspect arrives at the scene of the shooting outside the Hilton Hotel. Tisch said the gunman was “lying in wait” for several minutes before Thompson arrived at the scene. “Many people passed the suspect, but he appeared to wait for his intended target,” she said.

6:44 a.m.

Thompson walks toward the Hilton Hotel after leaving a nearby hotel that he was staying at, according to police. The UnitedHealthcare CEO was steps from the Hilton’s entrance when the shooter wearing a dark hoodie and gray backpack stepped from behind a parked car in the predawn darkness, before pursuing Thompson for a few steps and shooting him with a 9-millimeter pistol, according to law enforcement.

Police said the suspect fired “several rounds,” striking Thompson at least once in the back and at least once in the right calf.

According to surveillance footage, the gun appeared to jam after every shot, with the shooter reloading the weapon. The footage also shows that the suspect continued to shoot at Thompson as he fell to the ground.

The suspect fled the scene shortly after the shooting, heading “northbound into an alleyway between 54th Street and 55th Street,” and walked west on 6th Avenue, and eventually got onto an electric bike and rode toward Central Park, Kenny previously said.

6:48 a.m.

The suspect is seen riding an electric bike into Central Park at 60th Street, Kenny said on Friday. Roughly 8 minutes later, the suspect rides the bike out of the park, and then he is seen at 6:58 a.m. on the bike at 85th Street and Columbus Avenue, police say.

7:00 a.m.

The suspect, who is no longer on the bike, is heading northbound on 86th Street and four minutes later he gets into a cab, according to police.

7:12 a.m.

Thompson is pronounced dead at Mount Sinai West hospital, police say.

7:30 a.m.

The suspect is seen near the George Washington Bridge and a Port Authority bus terminal off 178th Street, and video shows him entering the bus station, according to police.

“We don’t have any video of him exiting, so we believe he may have gotten on a bus,” Kenny said.

Friday, December 6: Backpack Recovered

Police reportedly find a backpack in Central Park that they believe belonged to the suspect after a second sweep.

It was found between some boulders south of the Central Park Carousel, an unnamed law enforcement official told CNN. Police secured the area, bagged the evidence and sent the backpack—without opening it—to be tested at the department’s forensic testing lab in the Queens borough, the official said.

Meanwhile, during an appearance on CNN on Friday, Tisch and Kenny said they have “reason to believe” the suspect has left the city.

“We have reason to believe he’s no longer in New York City,” Tisch said.