Internet sleuths race to identify suspect in healthcare CEO shooting

Amateur internet sleuths are racing to identify the gunman who killed the chief of the nation’s largest health insurer in midtown Manhattan on Wednesday, hoping to piece together clues and beat police investigators at their own high-profile manhunt.

The shooter seemingly vanished after being caught on video in one of the world’s most surveilled cities, offering an online community of wannabe detectives a tantalizing case. They pored over street footage and digital data to guess his brand of backpack, debate how he had silenced his pistol and scrutinize his getaway bike.

But they are being confronted online by a rival movement: users who have lionized the gunman over an unconfirmed belief that the killing was an act of rage over the health insurance industry. They have shared memes branding the shooter as a “folk hero” and warned digital vigilantes not to track him down. “Anyone who helps to identify the shooter is an enemy of the people,” said one post on X with 39,000 likes.

Caption from article by Drew Harwell, Caitlin Gilbert and Douglas MacMillan.

[Mr_Maiq_The_Liar]

My best friend died two years ago of stomach cancer.
United healthcare refused to cover everything. The family needed help from a charity just to put their son into hospice care.

[monikak]

I worked as a biller, and we were denied a feeding pump for a child with a diagnosis of "inability to swallow." Apparently, eating is not medically necessary. I appealed it, and they covered the pump for our patient, but you have to be on top of these mfers.

[wildcatkountry]

Wow. Who would’ve thought that a healthcare CEO whose company denies 30% of all claims and uses an ai that denies claims incorrectly 90% of the time, would be unpopular. It’s almost as if people like getting the service they paid for, and don’t want to die a horrific death because their heart medication was deemed “a luxury”

[adamsfusion]

I can't believe that CEO guy shot himself three times in the back. Crazy

[kelf]

I live in midtown Manhattan, but unfortunately I developed significant onset of macular degeneration in both of my eyes within the past week. My claim was denied. I would help if I could, officer.

[redfiveish]

Are we sure the bullet wound wasn't a preexisting condition?

[Banana_Banshee]

i busted my nose up to the point of not being able to continue breathing at all through it. my insurance refused to cover it stating: “a nose is an optional airway”

[TheRealSU]

The funniest thing is that Twitter guy was wrong anyways, the police already confirmed that the guy didn't use a citibike

[MxchiefMxker]

I have United Healthcare. They won’t cover my wife’s Lyme treatment because she didn’t seek treatment for it as a child. When she was a child and didn’t know she had gotten it.

[awildfilingcabinet]

If it's vigilante justice, that means we can narrow the suspects down to anyone who was screwed over by the CEO's company. That narrows it down 30 million people.

[Trenton]

Health insurance has tried to deny me coverage for the anti-rejection medication that I have to take to not die as a heart transplant patient. They denied it because they deemed it a "luxury" medication. Nothing of value was lost by losing this merchant of death.

[Perthro]

As a very wise man once said : "well, as a matter of fact im actually blind in my left eye... And 43% blind in my right eye.
I dont see much of nothin'... matter of fact i dont even see you sir"

[matthewserrao]

Unfortunately United denied my hearing aids, so I didn’t catch a word of that.

[xXxJustCallMeM]

We can all see at those bullet wounds were self-inflicted. They meet all the criteria of the FBI standard for self-inflicted gunshot wounds.

[Vexossoul]

Unfortunately my condolences, as well as thoughts and prayers require pre-authorization. I would apologize, but unfortunately those arent covered.

[MarcelineCruze]

How sure are we that his being dead wasn't a pre-existing condition? I vote that we deny their application for an investigation.

[geoff]

Unfortunately, murder investigation isn't covered by your insurance...

[arachnidheist]

My health insurance won't cover my inhaler because I didn't try "alternative treatment methods first". I was diagnosed with asthma in the 4th grade- I'm not really sure what to do here.

[toxictaro]

I'm gonna be honest, I can't tell if the individual in the photo is male or female. Really wish I could see better, but vision isn't covered by my insurance.

[MrGoldfish]

Before you think about how he's a father of two, think about all the fathers of two he murdered.