Some Long Island firms reevaluating security after UnitedHealthcare CEO's New York City killing

A pair of corporate security experts with Long Island clients said some large firms are considering boosting protective measures following the UnitedHealthcare CEO's slaying in Manhattan, while other local companies said they're not planning enhancements since police called the crime a "targeted" attack.

A masked gunman fatally shot UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson after apparently lying in wait for him as he walked outside the Hilton Hotel on Sixth Avenue just before 7 a.m. Wednesday, according to the NYPD. The midtown shooting, steps from popular attractions, has sparked a massive manhunt, Newsday has reported.

A.J. Caro, chief executive of Arrow Security in Smithtown, which provides security for executives across the country, said he's heard from several clients, including those on Long Island, who plan to beef up personal security practices now. Many corporate executives, he said, while spending considerable resources to protect their companies' office buildings, have become "lax" with private security.

"They'll have bulletproof glass or they'll take physical measures to protect the office," Caro said. "But then they'll go off-site and go to a hotel with the whole executive team and leave themselves completely vulnerable. But I think this is a pivotal point where people have to start paying attention at that executive level, where they weren't necessarily paying attention before."

Glen Kucera, president of Enhanced Protection Services at security firm Allied Universal in Manhattan, said his Long Island clients also have reached out seeking additional security assessments, including social media monitoring and to identify whether some of their key executives face a higher threat level.

"Nobody is running out and saying, 'I need to have 24/7, protection for all my executives.' That's just not happening," said Kucera, whose company has Fortune 500 clients. "But what we're seeing is a lot more, 'Let's think about this.' Executives are valuable assets if they're public-facing and if they're making policy decisions."

Newsday reached out to roughly 50 of Long Island’s largest companies to learn more about their intentions regarding their security policies, including for their top executives, and several firms said it wouldn't alter their policies because police said the killing was considered a premeditated attack. Many other companies who responded declined to discuss safety protocols.

Garden City-based attorney Bob Sullivan, founding partner of Sullivan Papain Block McManus Coffinas & Cannavo P.C., said Long Island is a relatively safe area and improving security would be an overreaction that would add unnecessary costs to his practice.

"Life is a gamble," Sullivan said. "It's a shame the times we live in, but it would make the business non-profitable to make everything secure."

Sullivan said he agreed that enhanced protection might be considered for larger companies based in Manhattan. 

Matt Cohen, president and CEO of the Long Island Association business group, said while most C-suite executives he has recently spoken with still are processing the incident, it’s a time for businesses to reassess whether protections are needed or not.

"It’s not a one-size-fits-all approach," Cohen said, acknowledging "there are a lot of times where CEOs make complicated choices that might not be very popular, or that might negatively impact certain people."

Thompson, 50, of Maple Grove, Minnesota, was heading to an annual investor meeting when he was shot from behind, according to police. Shell casings at the crime scene were marked with words including "deny" and "defend," a law enforcement source previously told Newsday.

The words seem to echo a 2010 book authored by Jay M. Feinman that was titled "Delay, Deny, Defend" and subtitled "Why insurance companies don't pay claims and what you can do about it."

The NYPD released two new images of the suspected gunman Thursday, requesting the public’s help in identifying a person they said was "wanted for questioning," and the investigation was continuing Friday, Newsday reported.

Sharon Schultz, a spokeswoman for Intellicheck Inc., a Melville-based identity verification company, said "there are no changes in the security for our executives at this time."

Matthew Finn, an assistant marketing manager at Napco Security Technologies, a security company in Amityville, said the same: The business hadn't made any changes to its security practices following Thompson’s shooting.

John A. Catsimatidis, founder of Red Apple Group, Inc., a holding company for businesses, including supermarkets in Manhattan, and CEO of United Refining Company in Warren, Pennsylvania, shared similar sentiments.

"I think this was a hit job. I think it's an isolated incident. I'm the guy who sleeps with a gun under my pillow and worst case scenario I'll sleep with two," said Catsimatidis, who has a weekend home on Long Island.