Internet Super-Sleuth May Have Tracked Location of Healthcare CEO Assassin

A man’s stepping forward with a jaw-dropping claim -- he says he may have figured out the whereabouts of the assassin who shot UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson ... all thanks to Citi Bike's tracking data.

A data scientist named Riley, who goes by @rtwlz on X, dropped a bombshell post, revealing how he's been scraping Citi Bike data every minute ... and he could see exactly where individual bikes go.

And here's the kicker -- he says the only northbound Citi Bike to leave within 10 minutes of the shooting near the Hilton hotel where Thompson was entering, left at 6:44 AM and headed straight to a location at Madison Ave & 82nd St at 6:52 AM.

Riley shared a map screenshot that tracks the journey that appeared to back his observation.

In a follow-up X post, Riley revealed he’d already tipped off the NYPD with his findings. And it looks like law enforcement is on it ... sources tell TMZ detectives have caught wind of Riley's Citi Bike scoop and are looking into it.

It’s still up in the air whether detectives stumbled upon Riley’s post themselves or if he gave them the heads-up. While they’re calling the Citi Bike lead "small," they’re not brushing it off -- law enforcement is actively working this lead along with a bunch of others in their search for answers.

Sources tell us detectives are diving deep into footage from the NYPD's "Ring of Steel" cameras scattered all over Manhattan. With so many cameras, especially in the Midtown area, it's easy to track a suspect’s every move from block to block.

We're told police are feeling pretty confident that the suspect’s face is all over the surveillance footage, and they’re certain they’ll be able to track his movements from start to finish.

The NYPD initially dropped the chilling surveillance footage from Wednesday morning outside the Hilton hotel. The footage shows a masked shooter creeping up behind 50-year-old Thompson, pulling out a handgun, and firing at least 3 shots from less than 10 feet away. He then vanished into an alley on the other side of the street.