New photos released as NYPD hunt insurance boss killer
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Police in New York have released two photos of an unmasked individual wanted for questioning over the killing of a healthcare chief executive.
UnitedHealthcare boss Brian Thompson, 50, was fatally shot in the back on Wednesday morning outside the Hilton hotel in Midtown Manhattan.
The attacker fled the scene without taking any of Thompson's belongings. Police believe the victim was targeted in a pre-planned killing.
Investigators are also using facial recognition technology and bullet casings with cryptic messages written on them to track down the suspect. They have yet to reveal a motive in the shooting.
How did the shooting and escape happen?
The shooting took place at about 06:45 EST (11:45 GMT) in a busy part of Manhattan close to Times Square and Central Park. Thompson had been scheduled to speak at an investor conference later in the day.
According to police, the suspect - who was clad in a black face mask and light brown or cream-coloured jacket - appeared to be waiting for Thompson for five minutes outside the Hilton hotel where he was expected to speak.
Thompson, who arrived on foot, was shot in the back and leg, and was pronounced dead about half an hour later at a local hospital.
New York Police Department (NYPD) Chief of Detectives Joseph Kenny has revealed that the suspect's weapon appeared to jam, but that he was able to quickly fix it and keep shooting.
CCTV footage appears to show the gunman had fitted a suppressor, also known as a silencer, to his pistol, BBC Verify has established.
New York City Mayor Eric Adams - a veteran of the NYPD - told MSNBC that the use of a silencer was unprecedented in his career.
"I have never seen a silencer before," he said. "That was really something shocking to us all."
Investigators reportedly believe the firearm is a BT Station Six 9, a weapon which is marketed as tracing its roots back to pistols used by Second World War-era Allied special operations forces.
Police have reportedly visited gun stores in Connecticut to try to determine where the weapon was purchased.
After the shooting, video shows the suspect fleeing the scene on foot. Officials initially said the suspect used an electric Citi Bike owned by Lyft.
But Lyft, which owns and operates Citi Bike, later said it had been told by the NYPD that one of its vehicles had not been used, according to the BBC's US partner, CBS News.