An upstate New York resident was federally charged with cyberstalking on Wednesday for allegedly sending threatening voicemails to a family member of murdered UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson, starting hours after his death late last year.
The United States Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of New York accused Shane Daley, 40, of harassing and threatening to kill the victim’s family between Dec. 4 and Dec. 7, 2024. Thompson was fatally shot in midtown Manhattan on the morning of Dec. 4.
Daley spoke with the unidentified family member about Thompson’s death, his glee over the healthcare executive’s murder, and his desire that Thompson’s children meet the same fate as their father. Thompson left behind his wife and two sons.
“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,” acting U.S. Attorney John Sarcone III said in a statement. “My office and its partners will now do all that we can to hold him accountable for this vicious and outrageous conduct.”
In one of the four profanity-laced voicemails cited in the criminal complaint, which was reported by ABC News, Daley told the family member that Thompson “got lit the f*** up cause he’s a f***ing a**hole.” That message came on the same day as Thompson’s death.
“Profiting off the f***ing, off the backs of poor Americans. This s*** is gonna keep happening to you f***ing pricks. F*** you,” he said, complaining about the healthcare industry.
In a separate voicemail, Daley spoke of Thompson’s children in a threatening manner.
“Their dad died cause he was a f***ing capitalist,” he said. “$10.2 million a year, f***ing insider trading b****. Making a f****** off of the backs of poor Americans. You all deserve to f***ing die and burn and hell. F*** you. F*** your f***ing kids.”
Authorities believe the suspect in the murder, Luigi Mangione, decided to murder Thompson over his gripes with the healthcare industry and insurance companies after undergoing spinal surgery. He struggled with back pain.
Mangione is facing a number of federal charges and state charges in New York and Pennsylvania for the killing. He is currently awaiting two separate trials.
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Daley appeared at his arraignment hearing on Wednesday afternoon in Albany, New York.
If convicted, the defendant faces up to five years in prison, a maximum $250,000 fine, and a period of supervised release for up to three years. The FBI led the investigation.