‘Deny, defend and depose’: Messages on bullets used to kill UnitedHealthcare CEO

The assassin who killed UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson on Wednesday likely left a message on the bullet casings at the scene, The Associated Press reported. The report quoted police as saying that the words “deny,” “depose” and “defend” were written on the live rounds and bullet casings left behind by the assassin.

Thompson was shot dead on Wednesday outside a midtown Manhattan hotel, just before a scheduled company investor conference. New surveillance images of the accused, released by police even as a search is underway, show him smiling.

According to the police sources, each bullet and casing had just one word written on it, which led them to believe that the shooter might have been trying to leave a message.

The words on the ammunition may have been a reference to strategies insurance companies use to try to avoid paying claims, The Associated Press said.

NYPD Chief of Detectives Joseph Kenny had earlier said that investigators recovered several 9 mm shell casings from outside the hotel and a mobile phone from the alleyway where the shooter had escaped from.

The incident was captured on CCTV, which showed Thompson walking on the road when the masked shooter, wearing a black-hooded jacket and a bag, walking up to him and pointing a gun at Thompson. The shooter can then be seen firing several rounds at Thomspon.

The suspect then walked between two vehicles, got onto a bike and went towards Central Park, according to the police.