CEO of UnitedHealthcare Brian Thompson Is Shot Outside Midtown Hotel

A sprawling manhunt with police officers, dogs and drones spread citywide on Wednesday after the chief executive of UnitedHealthcare was fatally shot outside a Midtown Manhattan hotel in what the police called a bold assassination.

The executive, Brian Thompson, 50, the leader of one of the country’s largest companies, was shot just before dawn on West 54th Street near the New York Hilton Midtown, where his firm was holding its annual investors day. The surrounding blocks, draped in holiday decorations, are a hugely popular destination for throngs of tourists and shoppers alike.

The police commissioner, Jessica Tisch, who was sworn in 10 days ago, called the killing just after 6:45 a.m. a “brazen targeted attack” and said, “We will not rest until we identify and apprehend the shooter in this case.”

The killer wore a dark hooded jacket and a gray backpack, pictures released by the police show, with his face covered to his nose. He apparently knew which door Mr. Thompson was going to enter and arrived outside the hotel about five minutes earlier, ignoring passing pedestrians as he waited for his target.

Surveillance video shows Mr. Thompson, wearing a blue suit, walking toward the hotel entrance in the predawn dim. The shooter, seen from behind, walks up and fires at least three times, striking Mr. Thompson in the calf and in his back with a pistol that appears to be fitted with a silencer.

The victim manages a couple of steps and turns to face his attacker before collapsing on the sidewalk. The shooter’s pistol jammed during the shooting, but the gunman quickly cleared the jam and resumed firing, the police said.