What we know about New York City shooting of UnitedHealthcare boss Brian Thompson
Police in New York City are searching for the gunman who killed the chief executive of America’s biggest health insurance provider outside a Manhattan hotel on Wednesday.
Brian Thompson, 50, was the chief executive of UnitedHealthcare – the fourth-largest public company in the United States.
He was targeted by what experts claim is a “seasoned, professional killer”, who shot him as he was walking into the hotel where his company was holding an investors’ conference.
What happened?
The shooting happened at 6.45am on Wednesday – just before sunrise.
Brian Thompson was in New York City for UnitedHealthcare’s annual investors conference, which was due to start at 8am.
As he walked towards the entrance of the Hilton hotel on Sixth Avenue, CCTV footage shows a gunman emerging from two parked cars behind him.
A map shows the scene of the shooting outside the Hilton hotel
Pic: Reuters
The suspect draws his weapon and fires at least three times at close range – around 15ft (4.6m) away from him on the pavement.
Mr Thompson is shot in the back and the calf and falls to the ground.
The weapon, believed to have been fitted with a 9mm silencer, appears to jam, at which point the shooter fixes the problem and fires again.
CCTV shows the suspect firing his weapon. Pic: NYPD/Reuters
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There was at least one bystander present, but the gunman does not approach them, instead crossing the street and disappearing down an alleyway on the other side of the road.
Wanted posters show CCTV pictures of him on an electric bike, which police say he fled the scene on and was last seen riding in nearby Central Park.
CCTV shows the suspect fleeing on an e-bike. Pic: NYPD/Reuters
Emergency services later arrived at the scene, which is near the Rockefeller Center, where the famous annual Christmas lights switch-on took place hours after.
The UnitedHealthcare conference started on time as planned – but an hour later the chief executive of the firm’s wider group Andrew Whitty appeared on stage to say it was being cancelled.
Police officers guard the crime scene outside the Hilton hotel on Sixth Avenue. Pic: Reuters
Who was Brian Thompson?
Brian Thompson joined UnitedHealthcare from an accountancy firm in 2004 and was named chief executive officer in April 2021. He previously served as chief executive of the firm’s government programmes business.
UnitedHealthcare is the largest provider of Medicare Advantage plans in the US and manages insurance for employers and state and federally-funded programmes.
It is the fourth largest public company in the country – behind Walmart, Amazon, and Apple.
Brian Thompson. Pic: UnitedHealth Group/AP
He lived in a suburb of Minneapolis, Minnesota, which is around a 20-minute drive from the company headquarters.
He studied at the University of Iowa – and was married with two children.
His wife Paulette Thompson told NBC News that he had said “there were some people that had been threatening him” but gave no further details.
The police chief of the suburb where Mr Thompson lived, Eric Werner, said his department had received no reports of threats towards him.
His sister-in-law Elena Reveiz, told the New York Times: “He was a good person and I am so sad.”
UnitedHealthcare described him in its statement as a “highly respected colleague” and a “friend to all who worked with him”.
Mr Thompson’s wife said he had been receiving threats. Pic: UnitedHealthcare/AP
What do we know about the suspect?
Police officials are describing the shooting as a “premeditated, pre-planned, targeted attack” and “not a random act of violence”.
New York police commissioner Jessica Tisch said the killer appeared to have been “lying in wait for several minutes” for Mr Thompson to approach the hotel.
The 911 call describes him as around 5ft 10in, wearing all black, his face covered by a mask, and carrying a grey backpack.
Pic: NYPD
Pic: NYPD
Former FBI special agent Terry Rankhorn told Sky News his behaviour showed he was “clearly a seasoned, professional killer”.
“He paces his target. He doesn’t run up, like an inexperienced, emotional, amateur killer. He draws his weapon and takes careful aim,” he said.
Pic: NYPD
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Mr Rankhorn said the gun is likely to have malfunctioned due to the mismatch between the 9mm silencer used and what was likely subsonic ammunition.
“The ill-fitted suppressor on the weapon can cause a malfunction,” he said. “But he knew exactly how to deal with it.”
Bullets on the pavement at the scene of the crime. Pic: AP
Shell casings were found at the scene. Pic: Reuters
Mr Rankhorn said it is also noteworthy that the suspect spotted a bystander and was unfazed by them.
“He evaluates them to see if they’re any threat to him… determines they’re just trying to flee the scene, and returns focus to his target,” he said.
Crime scene investigators found several 9mm shell casings outside the hotel – and a mobile phone in the alleyway the gunman fled through.
The scene after Brian Thompson was fatally shot in New York. Pic: AP
Pic: Reuters
They also searched Mr Thompson’s hotel room, interviewed his colleagues, and scoured his social media.
Mr Rankin told Sky News any motive is “purely speculation” at this early stage. But he adds that possibilities include Mr Thompson being involved in “white collar crime” whereby confederates may have feared him going to the police, or an “insider stock trading scandal”.
Police have given no indication of the gunman’s motive so far. They are offering a $10,000 (£7,860) reward for information.
Virginia Giuffre, who accused Prince Andrew of sexual assault, has died aged 41.
In a statement to Sky’s US partner network NBC News on Friday, her family said she took her own life in the Perth suburb of Neergabby, Australia, where she had been living for several years.
“It is with utterly broken hearts that we announce that Virginia passed away last night at her farm in Western Australia,” her family said.
“She lost her life to suicide, after being a lifelong victim of sexual abuse and sex trafficking.
“Virginia was a fierce warrior in the fight against sexual abuse and sex trafficking. She was the light that lifted so many survivors.
“In the end, the toll of abuse is so heavy that it became unbearable for Virginia to handle its weight.”
Pic: AP
Police said emergency services received reports of an unresponsive woman at a property in Neergabby on Friday night.
“Police and St John Western Australia attended and provided emergency first aid. Sadly, the 41-year-old woman was declared deceased at the scene,” a police spokeswoman said.
“The death is being investigated by Major Crime detectives; early indication is the death is not suspicious.”
Sexual assault claims
Prince Andrew has denied all claims of wrongdoing. File pic: Reuters
Ms Giuffre sued the Duke of York for sexual abuse in August 2021, saying Andrew had sex with her when she was 17 and had been trafficked by his friend, the billionaire paedophile Jeffrey Epstein.
The duke has repeatedly denied the claims, and he has not been charged with any criminal offences.
In March 2022, it was announced Ms Giuffre and Andrew had reached an out-of-court settlement – believed to include a “substantial donation to Ms Giuffre’s charity in support of victims’ rights”.
‘An incredible champion’
Sigrid McCawley, Ms Giuffre’s attorney, said in a statement that she “was much more than a client to me; she was a dear friend and an incredible champion for other victims”.
“Her courage pushed me to fight harder, and her strength was awe-inspiring,” she said. “The world has lost an amazing human being today.”
“Rest in peace, my sweet angel,” she added.
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Dini von Mueffling, Ms Giuffre’s representative, also said that “Virginia was one of the most extraordinary human beings I have ever had the honour to know”.
“Deeply loving, wise, and funny, she was a beacon to other survivors and victims,” she added. “She adored her children and many animals.
“She was always more concerned with me than with herself. I will miss her beyond words.
“It was the privilege of a lifetime to represent her.”
Ms Giuffre said at the end of March she had four days to live after a car accident, posting on social media that “I’ve gone into kidney renal failure”. She was discharged from hospital eight days later.
Raised mainly in Florida, she said she was abused by a family friend early in life, which led to her living on the streets at times as a teenager.
She said that in 2000, she met Ghislaine Maxwell, a British socialite who was convicted in 2021 on federal sex trafficking and conspiracy charges and was sentenced to 20 years in prison.
Ghislaine Maxwell and Jeffrey Epstein. Pic: US Department of Justice
Ms Giuffre said Maxwell then introduced her to Epstein and hired her as his masseuse, and said she was sex trafficked and sexually abused by him and associates around the world.
‘A survivor’
After meeting her husband in 2002, while taking massage training in Thailand at what she said was Epstein’s behest, she moved to Australia and had a family.
She founded the sex trafficking victims’ advocacy charity SOAR in 2015, and is quoted on its website as saying: “I do this for victims everywhere.
“I am no longer the young and vulnerable girl who could be bullied. I am now a survivor, and nobody can ever take that away from me.”
:: Anyone feeling emotionally distressed or suicidal can call Samaritans for help on 116 123 or email jo@samaritans.org in the UK. In the US, call the Samaritans branch in your area or 1 (800) 273-TALK.
Donald Trump has met Volodymyr Zelenskyy ahead of the Pope’s funeral, Vatican sources have told Sky News.
The US and Ukrainian presidents had a “very productive discussion”, according to a White House Official, and have also agreed to hold further talks after the service.
They are among world leaders, including Sir Keir Starmer and Emmanuel Macron, who are attending the funeral of Pope Francis.
Follow live updates: Zelenskyy among world leaders joining thousands of mourners
There was applause from some of those gathered in St Peter’s Square when the Ukrainian leader walked out.
The former British ambassador to Russia Sir Tony Brenton said the event presents diplomatic opportunities, including the “biggest possible meeting” between Mr Trump and Mr Zelenskyy.
Trump and Zelenskyy meet for first time since Oval Office row. Pic: Reuters
He told Sky News it could mark “an important step” in starting the peace process between Russia and Ukraine, and is their first face-to-face meeting after a very public row between the presidents at the White House in February.
The bilateral meeting comes after Mr Trump’s peace negotiator Steve Witkoff held talks with Vladimir Putin at the Kremlin.
They discussed “the possibility of resuming direct negotiations between Russia and Ukraine”, Kremlin aide Yuri Ushakov said.
Russia and Ukraine have not held direct talks since the early weeks of the war, which began in February 2022.
Mr Trump has claimed a deal to end the war is “very close” and has urged Mr Zelenskyy to “get it done” in a post on his Truth Social platform.
He has previously warned both sides his administration would walk away from its efforts to achieve a peace if the two sides do not agree a deal soon.
Meanwhile, the Polish Armed Forces said a Russian military helicopter violated its airspace over the Baltic Sea on Friday evening, in a post on X.
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US
Donald Trump says Russia and Ukraine are ‘very close to a deal’ – and says ‘two sides should now meet’
Donald Trump has said Russia and Ukraine are “very close to a deal” with “most of the major points agreed” – as he called for the two sides to meet.
Shortly after arriving in Rome for Pope Francis’s funeral, the US president said high-level officials should now meet to “finish [the deal] off”.
“A good day in talks and meetings with Russia and Ukraine,” Mr Trump wrote on his Truth Social platform.
“They are very close to a deal, and the two sides should now meet, at very high levels, to ‘finish it off’.
“Most of the major points are agreed to. Stop the bloodshed, NOW. We will be wherever is necessary to help facilitate the END to this cruel and senseless war!”
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Ukraine-Russia peace talks explained
Throughout the week, the US president has criticised both Ukraine and Russia for failing to agree to a peace deal.
On Wednesday, he accused Mr Zelenskyy of harming talks on Truth Social, saying “the man with ‘no cards to play’ should now, finally, GET IT DONE”.
A day later, after nine people were killed in Kyiv after a Russian missile and drone strike, Mr Trump said: “Vladimir, STOP! 5000 soldiers a week are dying. Let’s get the Peace Deal DONE!”
The president and other officials have also threatened to withdraw from negotiations if no progress is made toward a deal.
It comes after Mr Trump’s envoy Steve Witkoff met Vladimir Putin in Moscow to discuss a US-brokered peace plan for Ukraine.
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Putin-Witkoff meeting
The talks allowed Russia and the United States to “further bring their positions closer together” on “a number of international issues”, a Kremlin aide said.
Speaking earlier on the flight to Italy, Mr Trump said he hadn’t been fully briefed on Mr Witkoff and Mr Putin’s meeting – but added it was a “pretty good meeting”.
Read more:
US and Russia talks moving in ‘right direction’, top diplomat says
A ‘barbaric’ 24 hours in a ‘horrendous’ war
Russia and Ukraine have not held direct talks since the early weeks of the war, which began in February 2022.
Ukraine has repeatedly said it would not accept a deal conceding land or handing over sovereignty to Russia.
However, Mr Trump said in an interview with TIME magazine that “Crimea will stay with Russia,” describing the region as a place where Moscow has “had their submarines” and “the people speak largely Russian”.
“Zelenskyy understands that, and everybody understands that it’s been with them for a long time,” he added. “It’s been with them long before Trump came along.”
When asked on Friday about Mr Trump’s comments, Mr Zelenskyy did not want to comment but repeated that recognising occupied Ukrainian territory as Russian is a red line.
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