Dystopian 'wanted' posters of top health CEOs appear in NYC

Alarming 'wanted' posters of top healthcare executives popping up across New York City prompted police to issue a bulletin warning leaders of the rising threats.

In the wake of the assassination of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson, video shared on social media showed 'wanted' signs featuring other healthcare corporate leaders plastered across traffic control boxes in Manhattan.

The signs featured pictures of Thompson, OptumHealth CEO Heather Cianfrocco and UnitedHealth Group CEO Andrew Witty. It is unclear who put the posters up. 

The menacing posters were erected on Canal Street - one of Manhattan's busiest thoroughfares - flanked with the red and black words: 'Wanted. Denying medical care for corporate profit. Health care CEOs should not feel safe.'

The signs also included the phrase suspected shooter Luigi Mangione allegedly wrote on the bullets found at the crime scene - 'Deny. Defend. Depose.' 

The alliterative trio of words reference a book by Jay Feinman's titled 'Delay, Defend, Deny: Why insurance company don't pay claims, and what you can do about it.'

A New York Police Department bulletin issued Tuesday emphasized the heightened risk on healthcare executives following Thompson's slaying, reported ABC News.

'Both prior to and after the suspected perpetrator's identification and arrest, some online users across social media platforms reacted positively to the killing, encouraged future targeting of similar executives, and shared conspiracy theories regarding the shooting,' the bulletin said. 

The bulletin highlighted social media posts sharing information about the other executives - and the NYPD said that menacing users are posting 'that it is a hitlist and that CEOs should be afraid.'

Health insurance companies have started removing images of their leadership teams from their websites following Thompson's assassination. 

Mangione, 26, appeared in court on Tuesday, fighting against extradition to New York - where he is charged with second-degree murder after Thompson was slain.

The former Ivy League student had been apprehended at a McDonald's in Altoona, Pennsylvania on Monday, when he was found with a 3D-printed pistol and black silencer, as well as a manifesto condemning the American healthcare system.

Authorities have said Mangione's three-page manifesto is currently being investigated, which they have labeled a 'claim of responsibility.'

He wrote about the grandiose size of UnitedHealthcare and how much profits it makes, and went on to condemn health insurance companies more broadly for placing profits over care.

'To save you a lengthy investigation, I state plainly that I wasn't working with anyone. This was fairly trivial: some elementary social engineering, basic CAD, [and] a lot of patience,' Mangione allegedly wrote in the manifesto, according to the Daily Beast.

He went on to say he had 'respect' for federal investigators, and apologized for causing any 'traumas,' but seemed to defend his alleged actions.

'Frankly these parasites had it coming,' the manifesto wrote.

It claimed that the United States had the 'most expensive healthcare system in the world,' but blasted the system for making America only the 42nd in life expectancy.

Thomas Dickey, Mangione's lawyer, said on Tuesday night that his client will also plead not guilty to the gun possession charges he is facing in Pennsylvania.

He made a court appearance after being charged with murder on Tuesday - pouting as he was escorted out of the hearing, after suffering a ferocious public meltdown hours earlier.

The orange jumpsuit-clad suspect had to be restrained as he screamed at police while heading into court in Altoona, Pennsylvania.