Brian Thompson shooting latest: Day 3 of manhunt for UnitedHealthcare CEO killer

On Friday evening, police in New York City found a backpack in Central Park that they believe was worn by the gunman who fatally shot UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson earlier this week.

The masked gunman, whose identity is still unknown, could be seen wearing a backpack in security footage that captured the methodical shooting outside of a hotel in Midtown, Manhattan on Wednesday morning. Moments after the gunman shot Thompson he took off on a bike and headed into Central Park. Video footage later captured him leaving the park and taking a taxi to a bus terminal, without the backpack.

ABC News has obtained an exclusive photo of the backpack that officials discovered in Central Park on Friday afternoon, believed to belong to the gunman who killed Brain Thompson.

When the CEO of one of the largest medical insurance companies in the United States was gunned down on the street in Midtown Manhattan on Wednesday, his death quickly turned into a larger conversation about the much-reviled industry in which he worked.

Brian Thompson, a 50-year-old father of two, had been in New York City for a conference when he was killed in what police believe was a targeted shooting.

Three words that were written on bullet casings found at the scene of the shooting mirror language used by critics of health insurance companies: “delay”, “deny”, “depose”.

Critics often use those words to call out insurers for delaying payments, denying claims and defending their actions. A 2010 book used similar words as those seen on the bullet in it’s title: Delay, Deny, Defend: Why Insurance Companies Don’t Pay Claims and What You Can Do About It .

New York Police Department Chief of Detective, Joseph Kenny, told reporters each word was written on a bullet.

It is unclear at this time what items may, or may not, have been in the backpack that police found in Central Park.

Detectives told The New York Times they were not going to open the backpack until it was examined at a forensic lab for evidence.

New York Police officers have uncovered what is believed to be the suspected shooter’s backpack in Central Park, a law enforcement agent told CNN on Friday evening.

The backpack was reportedly located between two boulders south of the Central Park carousel. That area is now being surveyed by crime scene technicians, according to The New York Times.

This is the second night in a row that police have searched the park looking for items that may have belonged to the person of interest. So far, police have not been able to identify the masked man.

Along with the backpack, police confiscated what appeared to be clothing and “a heavy object” according to The New York Times.

A dozen officers were searching for the shooter’s backpack near the intersection of 65th Street and Center Drive in Central Park on Friday, the New York Times reported.

The backpack appeared to be left behind by the gunman on Wednesday after he shot and killed CEO Brian Thompson. Video shows the gunman exiting the park without the bag.

Police on Friday searched trash cans, grates, storm drains and leaf piles in the park. It’s not clear if anything has been found yet.

The Atlanta Police Department said Friday that they are assisting the New York City police department “as needed” as part of the investigation into the killing of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson.

On November 24,  more than a week before the shooting, the suspect traveled on a Greyhound bus from Atlanta to New York by bus, law enforcement sources told Fox News.

“As of this afternoon, on December 6, 2024, the Atlanta Police Department was contacted by the NYPD and will now be providing assistance as needed. The NYPD is the lead agency in this investigation so please direct all questions to their Public Affairs Office. The Atlanta Police Department will not be able to provide interviews or answer any questions regarding this investigation.”

The manhunt for the shooter continues.

The gunman who killed UnitedHealthcare CEO “definitely planned this out,” authorities told CNN on Friday as the manhunt continues.

NYPD Chief of Detectives Joseph Kenny said they video of the suspect about 30 minutes before the shooting, “walking and wandering around the hotel area before he committed this act.”

“He knew what time the victim was going to be walking by. He knew what hotel this conference was going to be in,” Kenny said.

Investigators are still going through footage as the NYPD has access to “tens of thousands of cameras” around the city, New York City Police Commissioner Jessica Tisch said, something she said has been “huge” in the investigation.