The boss of the leading health insurer in the United States, UnitedHealthcare, was shot dead at dawn on Wednesday in the center of the Manhattan business district, New York. Police investigate murder ” target “ and is actively searching for the suspected killer.
It was around 6:45 a.m. (11:45 a.m. GMT) in the heart of the world’s financial capital when Brian Thompson, 50, was shot dead in front of the Hilton Hotel in Midtown Manhattan, which houses the headquarters of banks, insurers and financial groups. revealed local 24-hour news channel Pix 11 New York.
Mr. Thompson died from several shots to the back and leg, New York Police Chief Inspector Joseph Kenny confirmed at a press conference.
The victim was treated by emergency teams in front of the hotel, before being transported to the nearest hospital where he died shortly after 7 a.m., according to police.
Also confirming what anonymous sources had told local media, Joseph Kenny added: “Everything indicates at this stage that this is a premeditated, organized and targeted attack”.
Mobile unknown
“The motive for this murder is not known”he insisted.
The executive’s wife, Paulette Thompson, who spoke on NBC News television, said her husband was allegedly the subject of “threats from people”. “What do I know about poor (health) coverage? »she asked herself.
The parent company UnitedHealth Group of the health insurance subsidiary UnitedHealthcare declared itself in a press release “deeply saddened and shocked by the death of (their) dear friend and colleague”indicating “work closely with the NYPD” and asking “patience and understanding” to the public opinion of the megacity of 8.5 million souls, to the history punctuated by blood crimes and murderous score-settling.
The police, who released video surveillance images of the alleged killer brandishing a weapon, are offering a $10,000 reward for information about the killing, although they have not confirmed the use of a pistol with a silencer. nor gave details of a cell phone found at the crime scene.
An AFP photographer noted at dawn that the area around the hotel, at the corner of 54th Street and Sixth Avenue, one of the most congested areas of Manhattan, decorated for the holidays end of the year, were completed.
According to police, the alleged killer was waiting for Mr. Thompson outside the hotel, where a UnitedHealth Group investor conference was to be held to which the executive was invited.
According to descriptions of witnesses to investigators and the press, the suspect, a thin white man, wearing a mask on his face and dressed all in black with sneakers, fled first on foot, then on an electric bike. equipped with GPS.
In the morning he would have passed near the green lung of Manhattan, Central Park.
Health insurance giant
Police officers in front of the Hilton hotel in Manhattan, New York, near which the boss of the UnitedHealthcare health branch of the insurer UnitedHealth Group, Brian Thompson, 50, was shot and killed on December 4, 2024, according to local media Americans. / Bryan R. SMITH / AFP
Pix 11 television reported that UnitedHealth Group’s annual investor conference at the Hilton Hotel began at 8 a.m., then was abruptly canceled an hour later by the group’s big boss Andrew Witty, due to a “situation (…) very serious. »
Mr. Thompson had been part of parent company UnitedHealth Group for 20 years and had led its health branch since 2021. It insures 51 million people and works with government programs such as Medicare, the seniors’ health insurance system.
The group is headquartered in the state of Minnesota, where the governor, Tim Walz, was the running mate of Democratic presidential candidate Kamala Harris. He was moved by“horrible news and a terrible loss for the health and care sector”.
UnitedHealth Group, one of the largest insurers on the planet, has 440,000 employees and $371 billion in annual revenue.
According to figures from the US government, 216.5 million residents in the United States were covered by private health insurance in 2023 (out of approximately 340 million inhabitants). This lucrative sector also manages public insurance Medicare and Medicaid, under government mandate.
From the same source, residents on American soil spent $1,290 billion on private health insurance in 2022, or $6,067 per insured per year.
