Law enforcement issues warning in the wake of UnitedHealthcare CEO killing
Following the killing of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson and praise for the attack on social media, law enforcement is on high alert as calls for threats against health care executives and their families become "widespread," according to a Colorado law enforcement bulletin obtained by ABC News.
The bulletin warned that Thompson's killing may be used as "messaging and propaganda" to share the techniques and tactics for targeting other health care companies.
"Over the last two years, online activity has indicated a growing negative sentiment around conglomerates, the wealthy, and executive staff at private and public organizations," the bulletin said. "Calls for targeting the executive team, their families, homes, and places of work using a variety of online and offline means to harass, disrupt, and harm the individuals and the organizations have become widespread."
The brazen killing of Thompson in New York last week was met with both grief and morbid praise on social media, with some voicing support for the shooting as justified and venting about the health insurance industry.
A suspect in the shooting, Luigi Mangione, 26, was arrested in Altoona, Pennsylvania, on Monday and faces a second-degree murder charge in New York in connection with the shooting.
The bulletin noted the "general social media conversations" that followed Thompson's killing highlighted the "growing negative sentiment around conglomerates, the wealthy, and executive staff at private and public organizations."
While law enforcement does not believe Thompson's killing is part of a trend targeting health executives, the attack underscores the vulnerability of these high-profile executives.
The bulletin called for companies to review their security measures and "to safeguard executives against potential threats stemming from organizational decisions, public grievances, or personal visibility."
"This attack and the general social media conversations highlight the current threat landscape that individuals with deeply held personal grievances can and do conduct violence to satiate their grievance(s)," the bulletin said.
As Mangione sits in Pennsylvania custody, the local police who arrested him have themselves been dealing with their own security concerns, Altoona Deputy Chief of Police Derek Swope said Tuesday morning.
"This is clearly a very polarized case. We have received some threats against our officers and building here, we've started investigating some threats against some citizens in our community," Swope told ABC News. "We're taking all those threats seriously and doing all the follow up we can with those."
-ABC News' Sasha Pezenik contributed to this report.
