A New York man has been charged with cyberstalking a family member of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson, allegedly leaving threatening voicemails that expressed glee about the insurance executive’s killing, federal prosecutors said Wednesday.
Shane Daley, 40, was arrested Wednesday on allegations he placed multiple calls to Thompson’s family member in the days after the shooting and left messages saying the killing was justified and that the family member, as well as Thompson’s children, deserved to die in a similar manner, according to a criminal complaint.
According to prosecutors, the criminal complaint alleges that Daley placed several phone calls between Dec. 4 and Dec. 7, 2024, to a work phone number used by Thompson’s family member. The phone calls contained “threatening and harassing language,” prosecutors said in a news release.
Thompson was fatally shot on Dec. 4, and the phone calls began just hours after the slaying, prosecutors said.
Daley, of Galway, New York, a small town north of Albany, was arrested and had an initial court appearance Wednesday. He was released with GPS monitoring and is scheduled back in court Thursday afternoon, a spokesperson for the U.S. attorney’s office in Albany said. Daley’s attorney, Samuel Breslin, said they are reviewing the allegations and evidence.
In a statement, Acting United States Attorney John A. Sarcone said that “Brian Thompson was gunned down in midtown Manhattan. Daley, as alleged, gleefully welcomed this tragedy and did all that he could to increase the Thompson family’s pain and suffering.”
If convicted, Daley could face up to five years in prison, a fine of up to $250,000 and a term of supervised release of up to three years.
Thompson was fatally shot outside a hotel in New York City. The suspect, Luigi Mangione, was arrested in Pennsylvania after an extensive nationwide manhunt. According to prosecutors, he was angered over what he viewed as corporate greed. Mangione has pleaded not guilty to state and federal charges.
The killing of Thompson, who led one of the biggest health insurers in the U.S., resulted in a vast outpouring of public frustration with the country’s health care system.
