New York Police Department’s chief of detectives Joseph Kenny offered up a clear description of the gunman who killed UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson Wednesday morning: The shooter wore a brown jacket, black face mask, black and white sneakers, and a “distinctive” gray backpack.
Within hours, a crush of people had called the NYPD's tip line identifying the bag’s brand—including its CEO, Peter Dering, the founder of San Francisco-based Peak Design.
“This is insane,” Dering told the New York Times on Thursday. “Every aspect of this is so insane.”
Dering said he awoke Wednesday morning with ten texts from contacts, some he hadn’t heard from in years, who matched the NYPD’s released images of the suspected shooter and his backpack to a Peak Design bag. Dering called the police to report the tip but found that “hundreds” of people, the line operator told him, had already beaten him to it.
The CEO identified the bag as a version of Peak Design’s Everyday Backpack, which the company stopped producing in 2019. The shooter likely bought the bag between 2016 and 2019 or, less likely, bought the bag used from Peak Design’s website, according to Dering.
Peak Design, which Dering launched on Kickstarter in 2011, was originally a camera accessory company. It has since expanded its lines into backpacks and duffels, many of which are still organized into padded sections to accommodate camera equipment.
The shooter’s backpack has continued to play a role in the investigation to identify the gunman who killed UnitedHeathCare’s CEO. New York police are on day three of a manhunt for the gunman, who appeared to be seen via surveillance footage leaving Central Park without the backpack. The police have been unable to locate the bag.
Dering planned to meet with his general counsel about what the company would be able to disclose within the parameters of its privacy policy to officials, should they ask for his help.
“Of course, my instinct would be to do whatever is possible to help track this person down,” he said.
Dering did not respond to Fortune’s requests for an interview. An employee at a Peak Design retail store in Manhattan declined a request for comment.
What police know about the gunman
Police are honing in on the identity of the gunman, who fatally shot Thompson in what police called a “brazen targeted attack.” According to police, someone who appeared to be the gunman checked into the HI New York City Hostel on Nov. 24 after arriving in the city on a Greyhound bus from Atlanta. He checked out of the hostel on Nov. 29 and checked back in on Nov. 30, law enforcement told CNN.
In photos the NYPD released Thursday of the suspect apparently at the hostel, the suspect has his face uncovered while flirting with a hostel employee who told him to pull down his mask and smile, ABC News reported. The suspect is said to have checked into the hostel with a fake New Jersey ID that police found along with a cell phone. Police also collected a DNA sample they say is related to the case.
The morning of the shooting, the gunman arrived at the scene of the crime, the Midtown Hilton hotel, about 10 minutes before Thompson arrived for parent company UniteHealth Group’s investor day. After discharging his firearm and hitting the CEO in his back and right calf, the gunman fled to Central Park, first by foot, then by what appeared to be an electric bike.
The shooter left behind clues to suggest a motive for the attack: The words “deny,” “defend” and “depose” were found on the bullet casings at the scene of the crime. The words, sometimes known as the “Three D’s,” are used by insurance industry critics to refer to practices used to avoid paying patients’ claims.
