Two Minnesota homes owned by the family of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson were targeted Wednesday in what law enforcement described as a “swatting” incident
Maple Grove police said the bomb threats came by email at about 7 p.m. the Minneapolis Star Tribune reported.
“No devices or suspicious items were located during the investigation,” a police statement said. ”The case is considered an active investigation, while the incident appears to be a hoax.”
Hennepin County property records say the two homes are about a 1/2 mile apart, one owned by slain United Healthcare CEO Brian Thompson and the other by his wife, Paulette Thompson.
The Wall Street Journal reported earlier that the Thompsons are separated and live in separate homes.
Thompson was gunned down early Tuesday morning on a New York City street as he walked from his hotel to another hotel where his company, the largest health insurance company in the world, was holding an investors’ day, WABC reported. The masked gunman appeared to have been lying in wait for Thompson and walked up behind him, shooting him multiple times.
The shooter fled on foot into an alley, where he hopped on a bike and rode away. He was seen riding into Central Park and a few minutes later out of the park.
Investigators say he stayed at a hostel in Manhattan the night before but used a fake identification and paid cash. But police have released surveillance images showing him with and without the mask. They’ve been confused by lighting in the surveillance images, however, alternately saying he was wearing a black jacket or a light brown one. In most images, the jacket appears dark.
Police believe the shooting was targeted. United Healthcare and Paulette Thompson said that the CEO had received threats, yet he was completely alone Tuesday morning with no security whatseoever as he walked from his hotel to the investors’ conference, which was cancelled after the shooting.
Maple Grove police said previously they had received no reports of threats against Thompson, until the swatting.
Police have offered a $10,000 reward for information leading to an arrest and conviction.
