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On Wednesday, December 4, UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson was fatally shot outside New York's Hilton Midtown hotel just before attending an investor conference. Just twelve hours after the assassination, an anonymous person made a bomb threat targeting the late CEO's Minnesota house.
According to a report by TMZ, a city attorney from Maple Grove Police Department received a threatening email after 7 pm claiming that a pipe bomb was planted at Brian Thompson's Minnesota residence. A bomb squad was immediately dispatched to discover and nullify the alleged explosive device. However, they found no bomb at Thompson's residence.
A bomb squad was also sent to Brian Thompson's wife Paulette Thompson's house a few blocks away. The late CEO and his wife have been separated for a long time but live within a few blocks from one another.
At Paulette Thompson's place, security guards informed the cops of an anonymous female in a Jeep Renegade. She had allegedly put something in Paulette's mailbox about 15 minutes before the cops arrived. As per the security, the contents of the mailbox "appeared to be an envelope the size of a cell phone" and the Jeep had an Illinois license plate. However, the police didn't find anything inside the mailbox.
Exploring the details of Brian Thompson's assassination
According to a report by ABC News, Brian Thompson was in New York City for an investors' conference for his company UnitedHealthcare. The conference was scheduled to take place at the Hilton Hotel on December 4 at eight in the morning. However, the 50-year-old wasn't staying at the hotel according to the police.
He had reportedly reached the venue at 6:40 am and was shot outside the hotel. As per Livemint, Thompson was walking alone from a nearby hotel to the Hilton at around 6:45 in the morning. Security footage showed the alleged assassin waiting behind a parked car before suddenly open-firing at Thompson from behind. The killer fired several shots before walking away from the scene.
Thompson was seen stumbling and eventually collapsing. The police said that the killer was allegedly a masked white man and used silencers in his gun. Thompson was rushed to the nearby Mt. Sinai hospital following his shooting but was pronounced dead later.
Jessica Tisch, New York City Police Commissioner explained why it was a case of targeted killing and wasn't random.
“Many people passed the suspect, but he appeared to wait for his intended target,” said Tisch.
Furthermore, NYPD Chief of Detectives Joseph Kenny reported that the killer was able to fix a gun malfunction, implying that he had proficiency in dealing with firearms.
Shortly after Thompson was shot dead on Wednesday (December 4), UnitedHealthGroup issued an official statement, writing:
"We are deeply saddened and shocked at the passing of our dear friend and colleague Brian Thompson, the CEO of UnitedHealthcare. Brian was a highly respected colleague and friend to all who worked with him. We are working closely with the New York Police Department and ask for your patience and understanding during this difficult time. Our hearts go out to Brian's family and all who were close to him."
UnitedHealthGroup is UnitedHealthcare's parent company and is the largest health insurance company in the world.
