The NYPD SCUBA team sets up at the lake in Central Park
As evidence is sought in the death of United Healthcare CEO, Brian Thompson continues, police appear to be preparing for a water investigation in New York City’s Central Park. (Rashid Umar Abbasi for Fox New Digital)
New York Police Department divers were seen searching a lake in Central Park as the manhunt for the killer of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson continued.
Divers were searching for evidence in the lake during Sunday morning. The lake is close to where officials found a backpack linked to the suspect. Images and video show divers signaling to each other as the search continues.
Police had not announced as of late Sunday morning that any evidence had been recovered from the lake.
Police say the suspect fled the scene of the shooting last week and cycled to Central Park before taking a taxi to the Port Authority bus station. His arrival at the bus station has led police to conclude that he is no longer in New York City.
SHOCKING VIDEO SHOWS UNITEDHEALTHCARE CEO BRIAN THOMPSON SHOT ON NYC STREET
The police have been recovered a backpack linked to the suspect in the park. It contained Monopoly money and a jacket.
Retired FBI agent Scott Duffey told Fox News Digital that the backpack will be taken to a laboratory in Queens for forensic testing, where it will undergo trace evidence.
“(It’s) a process for hair, fiber (and) DNA,” Duffey explained Saturday. “If he puts his hand to the belt and pulls the buckle tight, as most of us do, that’s where DNA is likely to be found. And zippers.’
Members of the NYPD SCUBA team leave the lake in Central Park, New York, NY on Sunday, December 8, 2024.
The NYPD first announced that it was offering $10,000 for information leading to the suspect’s arrest and conviction. The FBI said late Friday it is offering up to $50,000 for information leading to the arrest and conviction of the suspect.
The manhunt has now spread across several states and entered its fifth day on Sunday. The New York City bus station the suspect used served routes that could have taken him into New Jersey, north toward Boston or south toward Philadelphia and Washington, D.C.
Members of the NYPD SCUBA team leave the lake in Central Park, New York, NY on Sunday, December 8, 2024. (Rashid Umar Abbasi for Fox News Digital)
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Former Washington, DC homicide detective Ted Williams said the Monopoly money in the backpack is the “murderer playing games with the authorities. All part of a cat and mouse game.”
“This killer knew there was a good chance they would find the backpack, and he is leaving breadcrumbs behind to let authorities know he is in control, not them,” he said.
