UnitedHealthcare CEO shooting latest: NYPD detectives follow leads to Atlanta

NEW YORK -- A man's masked look caught peering astatine a camera from the backmost of a taxi. Monopoly wealth successful a backpack ditched successful Central Park. And slug casings with words scrawled connected them.

Those are conscionable a fewer of the details that the New York Police Department has released to the nationalist successful the 5 days since a masked gunman fatally changeable UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson successful New York City.

The grounds has painted a representation of a "fully masked" fishy who appeared to person planned his movements with precision, but instrumentality enforcement is "on the close track," Mayor Eric Adams told our sister presumption WABC connected Sunday.

The NYPD released new, wide images of the suspect's look connected Thursday arsenic they proceed to hunt for the shooter.

"As I say, the nett is closing and closing," Adams said. "This was an highly challenging investigation. A afloat masked person. The magnitude of detective enactment it took to enactment the pieces unneurotic -- we consciousness we're getting person and closer."

As the manhunt continued for the suspect, whom investigators person not publically identified, constabulary successful New York and elsewhere said they were inactive looking for grounds successful Wednesday's fatal shooting of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson successful New York City. The NYPD believes it is making bully advancement toward identifying the suspect, but has truthful acold not done so, sources told ABC News.

New York constabulary detectives arrived successful Atlanta connected Saturday pursuing a ample fig of tips linked to the as-yet-unidentified suspect.

The Atlanta Police Department confirmed the accomplishment of the New York squad but declined to springiness much specifics.

The fishy allegedly arrived successful New York connected Nov. 24 connected a Greyhound autobus that departed from Atlanta, though it is unclear precisely erstwhile helium whitethorn person boarded. Sources told ABC News helium was spotted connected committee successful Washington, D.C.

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For the 2nd consecutive day, NYPD divers entered a water adjacent Central Park's Bethesda Fountain connected Sunday searching for grounds connected to the Midtown homicide. It was unclear if investigators recovered thing from the water.

Police person not yet recovered the distinctive weapon utilized successful the shooting.

The masked gunman changeable Thompson astatine point-blank scope astatine 6:44 a.m. connected Dec. 4 extracurricular the New York Hilton Midtown, wherever Thompson's institution was holding an investors conference. NYPD Commissioner Jessica Tisch described the onslaught arsenic "brazen" and "targeted."

A connection near astatine the country of an security executive's fatal shooting echoes a operation often utilized to picture insurer tactics to debar paying claims.

Police person learned that the fishy took a taxi to the Port Authority autobus installation astatine 178th Street and boarded a autobus retired of New York City pursuing the shooting, according to police.

The NYPD believes it is making bully advancement toward identifying the shooter but has truthful acold not done so, sources told ABC News. Late Saturday, the NYPD released caller images of the suspected shooter successful what appeared to beryllium the backmost of a cab. No further discourse was given.

NYPD released caller images of the suspect, arsenic constabulary divers hunt for clues successful Central Park

The fishy is believed to person boarded a autobus retired of the metropolis that made six oregon 7 stops, constabulary sources said. Investigators person followed leads successful aggregate states, the sources said.

The FBI is assisting the nationwide manhunt, according to instrumentality enforcement sources.

Investigators are continuing to comb New York City -- wherever the fishy is believed to person spent 10 days earlier the shooting -- for evidence.

The NYPD recovered a backpack that allegedly belonged to the fishy connected Friday night. The container had lone 2 items wrong -- a Tommy Hilfiger overgarment and Monopoly wealth -- sources with cognition of the ongoing probe told ABC News Saturday.

A backpack recovered by constabulary successful Central Park during the probe into the fatal shooting of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson, Dec. 6, 2024.

Obtained by ABC News

Investigators judge they secured DNA samples from respective pieces of grounds discovered astatine oregon adjacent the transgression scene, instrumentality enforcement sources told ABC News.

The DNA samples are presently astatine the NYC Office of the Chief Medical Examiner to beryllium tally done databases for a imaginable lucifer -- a process that could instrumentality respective days, the sources said.

Police were besides capable to extract a fingerprint disconnected a h2o vessel the fishy bought astatine a Starbucks. The people is smudged, truthful it is unclear whether it volition beryllium adjuvant to the investigation, sources said.

The brazen, targeted shooting unfolded astir 6:40 a.m. connected Wednesday extracurricular the New York Hilton hotel, wherever Thompson was to be his company's shareholder conference. The gunman, whom constabulary said was lying successful wait, changeable Thompson aggregate times from down arsenic the CEO approached an entranceway to the hotel, according to police.

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"The shooter past walks toward the unfortunate and continues to shoot," NYPD Chief of Detectives Joseph Kenny said. "It appears that the weapon malfunctions, arsenic helium clears the jam and begins to occurrence again."

Written connected the ammunition casings were the words "deny," "defend" and "depose," according to constabulary sources.

The words connected the bullets echo the rubric of the 2010 publication "Delay, Deny, Defend: Why Insurance Companies Don't Pay Claims and What You Can Do About It." Police are alert of the similarity, and are investigating whether 1 imaginable motive is choler astatine the security industry, sources said.

Centene, a large wellness insurer, said it would clasp a planned in-person capitalist time successful New York City adjacent week virtually, according to a Friday connection citing Thompson's killing.

"All of america astatine Centene are profoundly saddened by Brian Thompson's decease and privation to explicit our enactment for each of those affected," Centene Chief Executive Officer Sarah M. London said.

"He was a idiosyncratic with a heavy consciousness of empathy and wide passionateness for improving entree to care," London added. "Our hearts are with his household and his colleagues during this hard time."