Slain Healthcare CEO’s Iowa and Minnesota Connections

On Wednesday, December 4th, Brian Thompson, the 50-year-old CEO of UnitedHealthcare was gunned down on the Upper West Side of Manhattan, New York City. While the investigation is ongoing and the suspect is yet to be apprehended, the target of his attack has generated a lot of attention.

Brian Thompson's Midwest roots ran deep, as he had connections to both Iowa and Minnesota. Here is his story.

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Iowa Connections

Brian Thompson was born in Ames, Iowa on July 10th, 1974 to Dennis and Pat Thompson. He grew up near the small town of Jewell and graduated as valedictorian of his class at South Hamilton High School in 1993.

While Brian grew up in Cyclone Country, he chose to attend the University of Iowa, where he obtained a Bachelor's Degree in Business Administration and graduated in 1999. At the University of Iowa, Brian also met his future wife, Paulette, with whom he would have two children and eventually call the Land of Ten Thousand Lakes their home.

Minnesota Connections

Brian joined UnitedHealthcare in 2004 and he and Paulette had been residents of Minnesota for several years. Brian and Paulette lived in the Twin Cities suburb of Maple Grove and had two boys (ages 19-16) at the time of the shooting.

Shortly after Brian's murder, several bomb threats were made to Brian's two homes in Maple Grove. These have been deemed to be hoaxes by local authorities.

Several Minnesota leaders have offered their condolences to Brian's family since his shooting.

Minnesota is sending our prayers to Brian's family and the UnitedHealthcare team. Our thoughts to the UnitedHealthcare family that's out there. And then our state law enforcement and [Bureau of Criminal Apprehension] are providing whatever they can do, if there's a part to be able to be helpful in that. As I said, some of it's still preliminary on this, but we'll figure out what was behind this and follow through, making sure someone's brought to justice.

-Minnesota Governor Tim Walz

 

My thoughts are with Brian Thompson's family and loved ones and all those working at United Healthcare in Minnesota.

-US Senator Amy Klobuchar

To learn more about the timeline of events that led to Brian Thompson's death, check out the YouTube video below from ABC News.

Story Sources: KCCI Website, Brian Thompson Wikipedia Page