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Police in the US hunting for the man who shot dead United Healthcare CEO Brian Thompson on a New York street have found money from the Monopoly board game inside a backpack they believe the gunman used.

Two knowledgeable sources told NBC News, Sky News’ US partner, that the fake bank notes were discovered in the bag, which police found in Central Park after Mr Thompson was killed on Wednesday.

Police still have no idea of the gunman’s name or whereabouts or his motive for the killing but believe the man likely took a bus out of New York soon after the brazen ambush.

Top CEO shot dead outside hotel in New York City
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Brian Thompson was shot dead in New York City. Pic: AP

On Friday, detectives found the backpack in the park, but no weapon has been recovered from it or from other searches carried out by officers, two senior law enforcement officials close to the investigation told NBC News.

Their enquiries, though, remain very much ongoing and fluid, they said.

Other sources familiar with the case told NBC a jacket was found inside the bag, but it is unclear if it is the one worn at time of the shooting.

A New York City Police officer walks through brush and foliage in Central Park near 64th Street and Central Park West, Friday, Dec. 6, 2024, in New York, while searching for a backpack police believe was dropped in the park by the person suspected of killing UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson on Wednesday, Dec. 4, 2024. (AP Photo/Ted Shaffrey)
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A New York City Police officer searches in Central Park. Pic: AP

NYPD officers have returned to Central Park to search near where the backpack was found and also in wooded sections and fountain areas for other evidence, according to three sources who spoke to NBC.

Atlanta, from where the gunman travelled to New York by bus, is one focus of the investigation, with detectives searching for video from that bus station and others along the Greyhound Bus route, three sources close to the investigation told NBC.

Mr Thompson, head of the US’s largest health insurer, was gunned down outside his company’s annual investor meeting at a hotel near to Radio City Music Hall and the Rockefeller Centre in midtown Manhattan.

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Healthcare boss gunned down

The attacker was then filmed walking up slowly behind Mr Thompson and opening fire outside the Hilton hotel.
Image:
The attacker was filmed walking up behind Mr Thompson and opening fire outside the Hilton hotel. Pic: NYPD


Video found by detectives shows the man riding a bicycle into the park and later taking a taxi to a bus station from where he could travel to New Jersey, Philadelphia, Boston and Washington DC, according to the city’s chief of detectives, Joseph Kenny.

Read more:
New clues in hunt for gunman
Backpack found in search for New York shooter
Gunman filmed moments before shooting

Otherwise, the gunman hid his identity with a mask during almost all of his time in the city, including during the attack and even while he ate.

On Friday, the FBI announced it was offering a $50,000 (£39,100) reward for information leading to an arrest and conviction.

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NATO allies agree ‘ironclad commitment’ to collective defence – but no condemnation of Russia’s war in Ukraine

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NATO allies agree 'ironclad commitment' to collective defence - but no condemnation of Russia's war in Ukraine

Donald Trump and his NATO allies confirmed their “ironclad commitment” to collective defence in a communique released at the end of a brief summit in The Hague.

But there was no condemnation of Russia’s war in Ukraine – something that had been in previous statements by allied leaders when Joe Biden was in the White House. His successor has a closer relationship with Vladimir Putin than many of his allies.

The document did describe Russia as a “long-term threat”.

But there was also no word about NATO membership for Ukraine – something that had previously been described an “irreversible path”.

The allies also agreed to spend more on their collective defence.

Middle East latest: Trump rejects US intel on nuclear sites

The endorsement of Article 5 of NATO’s founding treaty came after the US commander-in-chief – the most powerful leader in the room – suggested on his way to the gathering that his definition of what it means may differ from other allies.

The US president’s words risked undermining the credibility of a commitment that has helped ensure the security of NATO for more than 75 years, though the joint statement, approved by the leaders of all 32 member states spelt out clearly what Article 5 constitutes.

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NATO leaders pose for family photo

“We reaffirm our ironclad commitment to collective defence as enshrined in Article 5 of the Washington Treaty – that an attack on one is an attack on all,” it said.

“We remain united and steadfast in our resolve to protect our one billion citizens, defend the Alliance, and safeguard our freedom and democracy.”

Sir Keir Starmer and the leaders of all European member states, as well as Canada, are all too aware of Mr Trump’s scepticism about NATO.

He has accused his allies of taking advantage of the US’s far more powerful armed forces to defend Europe and wants the rest of the alliance to take on more of the burden.

Read more:
How NATO’s Article 5 clause works
UK to buy nuclear-carrying fighter jets
Doubt cast over success of ‘Operation Midnight Hammer’

Urgently needing to keep him onside, Mark Rutte, the head of NATO, has been rallying member states to agree to a new pledge to spend 5% of GDP on defence and related areas – a level first touted by Mr Trump.

The statement commits allies to hit this goal by 2035, though Spain has already come out to warn it will agree to the new target but without having a plan to reach it.

The communique reads: “United in the face of profound security threats and challenges, in particular the long term threat posed by Russia to Euro-Atlantic security and the persistent threat of terrorism, allies commit to invest 5% of GDP annually on core defence requirements as well as defence-and security-related spending by 2035.”

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Is the UK preparing for war?

It is a significant rise, that is broken down into 3.5% of GDP on core defence – up from a previous goal of 2% – and a further 1.5% to be invested in national resilience, such as roads, railways, energy and cyber security.

The final communique was much shorter than usual, comprising just five paragraphs.

In the only mention of Russia’s war in Ukraine, it said: “Allies reaffirm their enduring sovereign commitments to provide support to Ukraine, whose security contributes to ours, and, to this end, will include direct contributions towards Ukraine’s defence and its defence industry when calculating allies’ defence spending.”

Mr Trump has vowed to end Russia’s war in Ukraine but has so far failed to stop the fighting.

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Why did Trump drop the F-bomb?

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Why did Trump drop the F-bomb?

Donald Trump has lashed out at both Israel and Iran – clearly frustrated after both sides exchanged missiles despite a ceasefire being declared.

For now though, a cessation of hostilities has held, with Israel saying its operation is now over.

The US president is now in The Netherlands for the NATO summit, and received a gushing text from Secretary-General Mark Rutte while en route.

US Correspondents James Matthews and Mark Stone discuss the latest.

If you’ve got a question you’d like the Trump100 team to answer, you can email it to trump100@sky.uk.

You can also watch all episodes on our YouTube channel.

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Leaks plunge success of ‘Operation Midnight Hammer’ into serious doubt

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Leaks plunge success of 'Operation Midnight Hammer' into serious doubt

There is a critical question hanging over the events of the past few days.

Behind the chest-thumping from Donald Trump, and the bewilderment beyond at his statecraft-by-social-media, doubts have now reached fever pitch about the success of the American bombing of Iran’s nuclear sites.

Leaks from the US Defence Department suggest the bunker busting bombs dropped on Iran’s three nuclear enrichment sites might only have set the country’s nuclear capabilities back by months.

U.S. President Donald Trump holds a meeting alongside Vice President J.D. Vance in the Situation Room at the White House

“We were assuming that the damage was going to be much more significant than this assessment is finding,” said one of three sources, speaking to NBC News.

“This assessment is already finding that these core pieces are still intact. That’s a bad sign for the overall programme.”

NBC News has spoken to three sources – all of whom say that the initial assessment by the Defence Intelligence Agency has concluded that the US airstrikes were not as effective as Mr Trump claimed.

Similar leaks were made to The New York Times, The Washington Post and CNN.

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Why did Trump lash out at Iran and Israel?

Responding to the CNN leak, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said: “This alleged assessment is flat-out wrong and was classified as ‘top secret’ but was still leaked to CNN by an anonymous, low-level loser in the intelligence community.”

She continued: “The leaking of this alleged assessment is a clear attempt to demean President Trump, and discredit the brave fighter pilots who conducted a perfectly executed mission to obliterate Iran’s nuclear programme. Everyone knows what happens when you drop 14 30,000lb bombs perfectly on their targets: total obliteration.”

In his address to the nation on Saturday night, Mr Trump had said: “I can report to the world that the strikes were a spectacular military success. Iran’s key nuclear enrichment facilities have been completely and totally obliterated.”

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Trump: Iran strikes ‘spectacular success’

US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth has also dismissed the leaks, saying: “Based on everything we have seen – and I’ve seen it all – our bombing campaign obliterated Iran’s ability to create nuclear weapons.

“Our massive bombs hit exactly the right spot at each target – and worked perfectly.”

“The impact of those bombs is buried under a mountain of rubble in Iran, so anyone who says the bombs were not devastating is just trying to undermine the president and the successful mission.”

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Iran’s nuclear capabilities

Battle Damage Assessments (BDAs) take a long time to be close to conclusive and require extensive intelligence analysis.

Speaking to Sky News, former director of the CIA and top US General David Petraeus cautioned about drawing any conclusions at this stage.

“Well, the truth is, it is just too soon. And those who are leaking should know that it takes a long time to do the battle damage assessment. And those who have actually pushed back in very conclusive ways also probably should have wait for the full results,” Gen Petraeus said.

“This is a very painstaking process. It’s an effort by the overall intelligence community, not just Defence Intelligence Agency. In fact, the CIA would be the lead in this effort to mine all sources of intelligence, imagery, intelligence of all types, signals, cyber, even open-source intelligence.”

Read more analysis:
There’s one F word Trump fears most
Can Tehran regard Trump as trusted broker of peace?

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Trump’s ‘ripping up the rule book’

Beyond the debate over the extent of the damage, questions remain over whether Iran might have managed to move equipment including centrifuges. Critically too, the whereabouts of about 400kg of highly enriched uranium is unknown.

The classified assessment of the military’s operation in Iran has been transmitted to Congress and has been viewed by some senators in a secure location, according to two sources with direct knowledge of the situation.

“I’ve reviewed the classified material,” Democratic Party Senator Tim Kaine, a member of the Armed Services Committee, said.

“I’m a little bit disappointed that my colleagues went and looked at it and mainly started talking about it publicly. That’s not we’re supposed to do with a classified report,” he added.

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Iran ‘not at all’ thankful for Trump

Speaking on Sunday to NBC’s Meet The Press, Israel’s ambassador to the UN Danny Danon insisted Iran’s nuclear capability had been dramatically set back.

“I think it’s still very early to jump into conclusions. We have to wait for the assessment. I can tell you one thing for sure. If you look where Iran was 12 days ago and where they are today, you understand that both Israel and the US were able to degrade the capabilities, push them back decades, and if we had an imminent threat, it doesn’t exist anymore.”

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