BRIAN Thompson’s assassin planned to throw the Monopoly money found in his backpack over the CEO’s body, a forensic psychiatrist has claimed.
The 50-year-old UnitedHealthcare boss was assassinated in a brazen execution in Midtown Manhattan on Wednesday in a chilling act caught on CCTV.
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The gunman ditched his bag on his way out of New York as cops said he reportedly fled the city after he was seen entering a bus station.
After combing Central Park, cops found what they believed to be the shooter’s backpack wedged between two rocks near the carousel and they have probed an alleged burner phone belonging to the suspect.
Sources close to the investigation told Bloomberg and NBC News that the backpack contained a jacket and monopoly money.
It has not been confirmed if the jacket matches the one seen on the suspect during the attack.
As the manhunt for the killer continues, forensic psychiatrist Dr. Carole Lieberman believes the bizarre item discovered offers an eerie insight into the killer’s mindset.
This is also supported by forensics teams discovering a chilling message left on the bullets the killer used to murder Thompson in cold blood.
The words “deny,” “depose,” and “defend,” were reportedly found on live rounds and shell casings at the scene.
Dr Lieberman sees the clues as intentional and sinister, working as a commentary on UnitedHealthcare and its business practices.
She told The Daily Beast: “The Monopoly money conveys messages, both that UnitedHealthcare is a ripoff that steals money from patients in order to pay its executives millions, and that it is itself a monopoly.
“He may have planned to scatter the Monopoly money around the CEO’s body after he shot him, but he forgot to take the bills out of his backpack.”
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Dr Lieberman’s beliefs in the killing support the claim that the suspect had deep-rooted issues with UnitedHealthcare.
She added: “This wasn’t just about taking a life.
“This was about sending a message – a deeply twisted, deeply calculated one.”
Hours after CEO Thompson was killed on the streets of New York City, his family homes were targeted in a “suspected swatting”, it has been revealed.
The Maple Grove Police Department report that they received “a report of a bomb threat” involving two houses in the early evening on Wednesday.
One home was owned by the late Thompson and the other y his wife Paulette, according to Hennepin County property records seen by The Minnesota Star Tribune.
Cops confirmed that “no devices or suspicious items were located during the investigation” and that the case “is considered an active investigation, while the incident appears to be a hoax”.
The bomb threat was directed to the City Attorney from Maple Grove in an eerie email, which claimed there was a deadly pipe bomb at Thompson’s home.
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But the dispatched bomb squad found no bomb, with the same squad clearing the nearby home of Thompson’s wife.
Meanwhile an FBI chief has claimed that an ID for the suspected killer will come out “in days”.
Authorities so far know what the suspect looks like – but are unaware of who or where he is.
Previously, only two images were released showing the suspect’s full face as he checked into a hostel days before the shooting and pulled down his mask to flirt with the receptionist.
But new photographs show a man in a black hoodie, wearing a blue medical mask looking through the partition of what appears to be a New York City cab.
A second image is taken from inside a vehicle while the man is on the sidewalk.
Again, he is wearing a face mask, a hood over his head, and a black puffer jacket.
But a former FBI profiler doesn’t think that the assassin can be on the run for much longer – and believes his identity could be released soon.
Mary Ellen O’Toole told CNN: “I’m thinking we’re going to know who this is within a matter of a few more days, if that.
“He’s completely outnumbered.
“With that kind of manpower behind their efforts, they’re going to come up with the information that identifies him.
“The ability to stand up against that kind of an investigation, one person can’t do it, no matter how arrogant you are.”
As cops appeal for more information, the FBI and NYPD have offered rewards for information leading to an arrest in the case.
New York police originally offered $10,000 to those with crucial information about the suspect and this was bolstered on Friday when the FBI joined by offering up to $50,000.
Also bolstering the investigation on Friday was the announcement that the Atlanta Police Department have joined the case.
It comes after the suspect has been linked to the state.
He is believed to have entered New York City on a Greyhound bus that originated from Atlanta in November and he fled on a bus back there after the assassination.
No motive has been released yet for the killing, but police believe Thompson was “specifically targeted”.
An expert has claimed that the shooter’s gun malfunction may have been “for show” and connected to this message scrawled on the shell casings.
The killer held the weapon in both hands and calmly fired the deadly rounds that hit Thompson in the back and the leg.
Cops are working to establish what kind of firearm was used by the assassin as detectives believe he may have used a rare WW2 spy gun with 9mm rounds.
Timeline of Brian Thompson’s murder
BRIAN Thompson, the 50-year-old CEO of UnitedHealthcare, has been shot to death, and a desperate search is underway for his killer.
Here is everything we know about Thompson’s murder so far.
December 2 – Thompson travels from his home in Minnesota to New York City for an investor conference in Midtown Manhattan.
December 4, 6:45 am – Thompson walks from his hotel across the street to the New York Hilton Midtown and is murdered by a masked shooter. The execution was caught on surveillance, and the suspect was seen biking away toward Central Park. Cops spark a citywide search for the assassin.
December 4, later that morning – News broke the shooting victim was Thompson, who was the CEO of America’s largest private healthcare provider. Cops released disturbing images of the execution, offered a reward for information, and made a desperate plea for New Yorkers to keep their eyes out.
December 4, afternoon – Thompson’s estranged wife Paulette revealed her husband had been threatened before he was shot.
December 4, afternoon – Cops released more eerie images of the suspect ordering at Starbucks that partially revealed his face. The U.S. Sun confirmed the coffee shop was just two blocks away from the shooting, but it’s unclear when he stopped by.
December 5, morning – Reports claim the words “deny,” “dispose,” and “defend” were engraved on live rounds and shell casings left behind by the assassin. These words echo the book Delay, Deny, Defend, which is about the failings of the healthcare industry. The author of the book had no comment on the reports.
December 5, morning – Cops raid a hostel in the Upper West Side of New York City where the suspect is said to have stayed. It’s believed he wore a mask for most of the time he was there.
December 5, morning – A person of interest in Thompson’s murder is pictured. He’s wearing a hood in the photo, but his full face could be seen breaking into a beaming grin. Still, no arrests have been made in the investigation.
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