Though the NYPD is yet to nab the killer who gunned down Brian Thompson, the CEO of UnitedHealthcare Wednesday in front of a hotel early in the morning with many witnesses, experts are of the view that the man was not a hitman. Not much is known about the killer but he left a trail of clues and was captured in many CCTV footage which makes the experts conclude that this was a person who made up his mind about what he did. That’s it.
Killer had to fire several shots
Experts who analyzed the CCTV footage claimed that though the killer was deft in handling the gun, he might not be a trained shooter because he had to fire many shots and shooting in the calf is not a sign of a professional hire, they think. “Forgive me for saying too much on too little evidence, but it looks like the kind of guy that made up his mind that he was doing the right thing,” David Shapiro, a professor at John Jay College of Criminal Justice in New York, and a former FBI special agent told NYT. “He didn’t look like a guy that was fearful.” The killer might have had military or law enforcement training or maybe he is a hunter or has practiced at a range.
CEO killer had no perfect escape plan
Cops are yet to get a breakthrough in the case but experts think the killer did not have a proper escape plan. Hopping on an e-bike and riding toward Central Park does not impress experts as a murder escape plan. Choosing midtown Manhattan to murder the CEO is a rash idea where there are cameras everywhere.
Killer left a trail of clues
Before the shooting, the man stayed in a hostel on the Upper West Side of Manhattan where he shared a room with other guests. He let the CCTV camera catch his smiling face as his mask slipped. Reports said he took off his mask and smiled while he was apparently flirting with the receptionist of the hotel. Just before the murder, he stopped by a Starbucks where he bought coffee, a bottle of water and two PowerBars.
The bullet casings left by the killer had three words engraved on them “Deny”, “defend” and “depose” — similar to the title of Jay M Feinman’s 2010 book ‘Delay, Deny, Defend’.
A former police investigator from Kansas City, Gary Jenkins, told NYT that it was likely “somebody that has an ax to grind”.
