Amazon has ordered merchandise inspired by the shooting of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson removed from the forum, including glasses, clothing, and other items with the phrase "Deny, Defend, Depose" — the words written on ammunition casings found at the death scene.
The Washington Post reports that the items started appearing on online outlets such as Amazon, eBay, Etsy, and TikTok soon after Thompson was killed in midtown Manhattan last week.
Police arrested a suspect, Luigi Mangione, 26, Monday in Altoona, Pennsylvania. Later in the day, Manhattan prosecutors filed charges of first-degree murder hours after he was arraigned in a Pennsylvania court on weapons and forgery charges.
The phrase "deny, defend, depose" could refer to the methods said to be used by health insurance companies to limit or decline claims. The motive for Thompson's killing has not yet been officially confirmed.
Amazon removed the merchandise Monday after The Washington Post, which Amazon founder Jeff Bezos owns, contacted the company for comment.
The online retailer said the products violated its guidelines, but wouldn't say which ones.
But by Sunday afternoon, items were popping up, including a "Deny Defend Depose T-Shirt" for $24.55; a vinyl detail item for cars with the words on it for $6.99, and a wine tumbler with the phrase for $12.59.
It's not clear how many of the items were sold before Amazon pulled them down, but the owner of one novelty company told The Post that he had sold six hats with the phrase for $24.99 each through Amazon before he was notified that the listing was being taken down.
The seller said he assumed Amazon deemed his product as "offensive." He added that he's already printed the six hats he sold on the site and is ready to ship them and that the hats are still available on Etsy and through his website.
Other items on Etsy included Christmas tree ornaments with the words on them.
On TikTok Shop, as of Monday, one of the shirts featured had the phrase as well as an illustration of a guillotine.
The app also featured "flash sales" on apparel that included an illustration of the shooting, and one holiday sweatshirt read "Tis the Season, Deny. Defend. Depose" and included reindeer and the scales of justice.
And as of Monday, several songs titled "Deny, Defend, Depose" remained available on Amazon and Spotify.
Scott Overland, an eBay spokesman, said the company's policies do not ban sales of items with the phrase "deny, defend, depose." However, he said that items that glorify or incite violence, including celebrating Thompson's murder, are prohibited.
Meanwhile paperback copies of a 2010 book, "Delay, Deny, Defend" by Rutgers Law professor emeritus Jay Feinman are sold out on Amazon. The title remains available on Kindle, and hard copies are being sold on eBay for $999 and $1,776.
Sandy Fitzgerald ✉
Sandy Fitzgerald has more than three decades in journalism and serves as a general assignment writer for Newsmax covering news, media, and politics.
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