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Breaking News – New York: hunt for Thompson’s killer

Video and new details of the premeditated murder in front of the Hilton hotel released. In the shell casings found at the crime scene was inscribed

The hunt continues for the killer who murdered UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson in front of the Hilton hotel in New York. Authorities of the New York Police Department (NYPD) are convinced that the murder was premeditated and have released some stills from surveillance cameras showing the suspect moments before the crime.

The videos show a man with his face partially covered, the hood of his jacket up and a backpack over his shoulder. These details match the image of the killer filmed during the attack. The suspect was identified as he was moving around the Upper West Side in the early hours of the morning, a trail that could prove crucial to the investigation.

According to ABC News, the suspect was filmed at 5:00 a.m. walking along the Upper West Side area. Later, at around 6:15 a.m., he was spotted exiting an underground station on 57th Street. In that area, the man made a cash purchase at a local Starbucks, before heading towards the Hilton, where the crime took place.

Messages left on bullets ‘Deny’, ‘Defend’ and ‘Depose’

The murder of Brian Thompson, CEO of UnitedHealthcare, on 4 December in front of the Hilton Hotel in Manhattan, takes on disturbing contours with the discovery of messages engraved on the bullets used in the attack. Police found the words ‘Deny’, ‘Defend’ and ‘Depose’, recalling the title of a book by Jay M. Feinman, Delay – Deny – Defend, published in 2010. The text denounces the practices of insurance companies in refusing or delaying compensation, and the cover explicitly describes the difficulties faced by customers in their claims.

According to the authorities, this was a targeted attack. The victim’s wife reported that Thompson had received threats in the preceding weeks, a factor that prompted investigators to look into possible links between the murder and his professional activities.

The New York Police Department released images from surveillance cameras showing the alleged killer in various stages of approaching the crime scene. The man, with his face covered and his hood up, was filmed leaving an underground station on the Upper West Side at around 6.15 a.m. and stopped at a Starbucks before heading towards the Hilton hotel, where he carried out the attack at around 6.45 a.m.

Investigators are trying to reconstruct the psychological profile and motivations of the killer, considering the possible meaning of the messages engraved on the shell casings. The killer reportedly chose to leave a signature, possibly linked to a message of protest against the insurance system, but further analysis will be needed to confirm this hypothesis.

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