New York assassin’s identity kept secret despite police knowing who is behind attack on healthcare CEO

New York City Mayor Eric Adams has revealed police know the identity of the suspect who killed UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson, but are deliberately withholding the name from the public.

The announcement comes five days after the daylight assassination of one of America’s most prominent healthcare executives.

“We do not want to give him an upper hand at all. Let him continue to believe he can hide behind the mask,” Adams said.

The mayor expressed confidence in the investigation’s progress, stating: “We revealed his face. We’re going to reveal who he is and we’re going to bring him to justice.”

In a significant development, investigators discovered a distinctive grey backpack abandoned near a playground in Central Park, believed to belong to the suspect.

The backpack, which was sent to a Queens laboratory for testing, contained Monopoly board game money and a jacket.

NYPD Chief of Detectives Joseph Kenny described the backpack as “very distinctive”.

Paul Dering, CEO of Peak Design, has suggested the backpack might be one of his company’s products, though this has not been officially confirmed.

The assassin approached Thompson from behind, using a gun equipped with a silencer to fire multiple shots, striking the executive in the back and leg.

Following the attack, the suspect fled on a bicycle through the city streets.

Police reports indicate he was last seen cycling towards Sixth Avenue before entering Central Park at 6.48am.

The brazen nature of the daylight killing has shocked the healthcare industry, with Thompson having been one of the highest-paid executives in the sector, reportedly earning around £7.8million annually.

Thompson had served as CEO of UnitedHealthcare since April 2021, having joined the company in 2004.

The investigation took an intriguing turn with the discovery of shell casings at the crime scene bearing carved words: “deny, defend and depose”.

These words appear to reference Jay Feinman’s 2010 book criticising the insurance industry, titled “Delay Deny Defend: Why Insurance Companies Don’t Pay Claims and What You Can Do About It”.

The connection to insurance industry criticism is particularly notable as UnitedHealth is America’s largest health insurer.

The company provides healthcare benefits to tens of millions of Americans, who face the highest healthcare costs globally.

A Gallup poll released on Friday indicated Americans’ confidence in healthcare quality has reached its lowest point in 24 years.

The murder has prompted heightened security measures across the healthcare industry.

Several major health insurers, including UnitedHealth, CVS Health and Centene, have removed executive photographs from their corporate websites.

In a further security precaution, Centene announced it would cancel its planned in-person investor day.

The company will instead hold the event virtually via streaming platform.

These protective measures reflect growing concerns about executive safety in the healthcare sector following Thompson’s assassination.