New images of UnitedHealthcare CEO shooting person of interest released as sources say NYPD searches for gun
NEW YORK — The New York City Police Department released two new images of the person of interest wanted for questioning in the deadly shooting of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson outside the Hilton Midtown hotel in Manhattan.
One picture released Saturday shows the person of interest in the back of a taxi, and another shows him walking on a sidewalk outside a vehicle. In both, he is wearing a mask and has a hood up.
NYPD divers search Central Park lake
Earlier that afternoon, NYPD divers were seen searching the lake in Central Park. Sources tell CBS News New York they were looking for the weapon used in the deadly shooting.
The search came one day after police found a backpack in Central Park, which law enforcement officials say they believe belongs to the suspected gunman. Sources told CBS News New York that the backpack contained a jacket, but not the gun police believe was used in the crime. The backpack is now being analyzed at an NYPD forensic lab for possible hair and DNA samples, sources say.
Sources said investigators, including divers, were searching the lake around 3:30 p.m. Saturday. Citizen app video shows police tape on the southern end of the lake in Central Park, in the same area where the backpack was found.
"This corner, like not a big area, but this corner was blocked off with probably five policemen, one van, and then we saw scuba gear and a couple divers getting in, just kind of splashing around, looking only in this area," a witness named Charlotte D. said.
Sources told CBS News New York the search was unsuccessful. Police returned to the Central Park lake on Sunday to continue looking.
Police closing in on person of interest in UnitedHealthcare CEO murder, mayor says
Mayor Eric Adams, who spoke to reporters at a Police Athletic League event in Harlem on Saturday, said "the net is tightening" as police are closing in on finding the person of interest who had been staying at an Upper West Side hostel and was caught on camera without his mask on during what sources say was a flirtatious moment with an employee.
"We don't want to release that now. If you do, you are basically giving a tip to the person ... we're seeking, and we do not want to give him an upper hand at all. Let him continue to believe he can hide behind the mask," Adams said, when asked about the person of interest's identification.
Police said the person of interest left his Upper West Side hostel around 5:30 a.m. Wednesday, arriving at the Midtown Hilton just 11 minutes later. They say he placed at order at Starbucks around 6:17 a.m. before setting his eyes on Thompson and pulling the trigger at 6:46 a.m.
According to police, he then rode a bike to Central Park before grabbing a taxi, hopping out and then catching another taxi to Washington Heights, where he was seen on camera entering the Port Authority bus terminal. Police believe he left the city soon after.
The investigation is ongoing. The FBI is now offering a $50,000 reward for information leading to an arrest and conviction.