UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson — who was fatally shot outside a New York City hotel in a targeted hit — was a father of two hailed as a “stand-up guy” by those who knew him.
Thompson, 50, was set to speak at an Investors’ Day conference at the Hilton Hotel in Midtown on Wednesday morning when he was gunned down by a masked shooter in what police described as a “premeditated, preplanned, targeted attack.”
He had arrived in the Big Apple on Monday from Minnesota, where he lived in a five-bedroom home he purchased in 2018 for $1 million, records show.
Thompson was cited as an integral part of the UnitedHealth Group, the largest private insurer in the nation that sits in fourth place on the Fortune 500.
Top of his class
Thompson graduated valedictorian at the University of Iowa in 1997, where he earned his bachelor’s of business administration in accounting.
While studying at the university, Thompson was named the outstanding accounting junior and senior by the school and the Iowa Society of CPAs, according to his LinkedIn page.
More than 20 years in health care
After graduating college, Thompson worked at PwC, an auditing and accounting firm based in the greater Minneapolis-St. Paul area.
He then found his way to the UnitedHealth Group in 2004 as the company’s director of corporate development, with Thompson getting promoted until he was named CEO of the company’s government programs in 2019.
In 2021, he was named the head of UnitedHealthcare, the firm’s insurance division, with parent company CEO Andrew Witty praising his work.
“Brian’s experience, relationships and values make him especially well-suited to help UnitedHealthcare improve how healthcare works for consumers, physicians, employers, governments and our other partners, leading to continued and sustained long-term growth,” Witty said at the time.
A family man
Thompson was married to Paulette “Pauley” Thompson, 51, a fellow University of Iowa graduate who serves as a physical therapist at the Park Nicollet Health Services clinic in Minneapolis.
Pauley touted her idyllic life with their sons in her work biography, writing, “I love spending time with my two boys and taking them to all of their activities.
“I also love boating, spending time with family and friends, playing piano, biking, and traveling.”
The grieving widow said she was heartbroken over the attack, which police told her was clearly “planned,” NBC News reported.
“I can’t really give a thoughtful response right now. I just found this out and I’m trying to console my children,” she told the outlet.
Shot on his way to a conference
Thompson was on his way to speak at the Investors Day conference where police say the suspect was lying in wait around 6:46 a.m..
The suspect fired multiple times at Thompson, striking the CEO in the back and right calf and then walking toward him and continuing to shoot.
The shooter then ran off, before hopping onto an electric Citi Bike, last seen entering Central Park.
One investor who was at the Hilton described the chaos at the now-canceled conference, noting that attendees were seen crying and leaving the room.
“[He was] a stand-up guy, a good dude,” the investor told Fortune. “I’ve never met anyone who had anything bad to say about him.”
Prior to the shooting, Pauley said her husband had been receiving threats involving his job, which oversees the largest private insurance company in the nation.
“There had been some threats,” she told NBC News. “Basically, I don’t know, a lack of coverage? I don’t know details. I just know that he said there were some people that had been threatening him.”
On the hunt for the killer
Police said the investigation was ongoing as officers searched for the gunman, who was last seen around Central Park on Center Drive.
NYPD Crime Stoppers has put out a $10,000 reward for information regarding Thompson’s murder.
Police have yet to state a motive, but NYPD Commissioner Jessica Tisch said the shooting “does not appear to be a random act of violence.”
“Every indication show that this is a premeditated, preplanned, targeted attack,” she told reporters.