NYPD photos show face of person sought

New York police on Thursday released surveillance photos of a person wanted for questioning in the fatal shooting of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson.

The two photos show most of the face of the person sought by the NYPD in connection with its investigation of Wednesday’s killing in midtown Manhattan. The images were captured by cameras at a hostel on Manhattan’s Upper West Side.

Thompson, 50, was killed by a masked gunman early Wednesday morning as he headed toward the entrance of the Hilton Hotel for an investor meeting of UnitedHealth Group, the parent company of UnitedHealthcare.

UnitedHealthcare is the largest private payer of health insurance benefits in the United States.

“The New York City Police Department is asking for the public’s assistance in identifying the individual depicted in the newly attached media wanted for questioning in connection with the below listed homicide,” the NYPD’s media affairs office said in a statement.

Investigators were at the hostel, HI New York City, on Thursday.

“We are fully cooperating with the NYPD and, as this is an active investigation, cannot comment at this time,” a spokeswoman for Hostelling International USA, which operates the hostel, told NBC News.

Police on Wednesday released a video and still photos of Thompson’s slaying, which showed the masked gunman shooting at the CEO. The shooter, who was wearing a backpack, fled the scene and got on a bicycle that he rode into nearby Central Park.

The NYPD also Wednesday had released surveillance photos from a nearby Starbucks store that showed the suspected shooter, who was wearing a mask at the time.

A $10,000 reward has been posted by the NYPD and Crime Stoppers for information leading to the arrest and conviction of the person responsible for killing Thompson.

A statement taped to the door of a Thompson family home in Minnesota on Thursday said, “We are shattered to hear about the senseless killing of our beloved Brian.”

“Brian was an incredibly loving, generous, talented man who truly lived life to the fullest and touched so many lives,” the statement said. “Most importantly, Brian was an incredibly loving father to our two sons and will be greatly missed. We appreciate your condolences and request complete privacy as our family moves through this difficult time.”

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