Luigi Mangione, the suspect in the brazen murder of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson, shouted and struggled with officers outside the courthouse where he was set to appear for a hearing Tuesday.
Prosecutors on Tuesday were beginning to take steps to bring the 26-year-old Ivy League graduate from a prominent Maryland real estate family back to New York to face a murder charge while new details emerged about his life and how he was captured.
Mangione struggled with officers as he arrived at the Blair County Courthouse on Tuesday and shouted something partly unintelligible that referred to an “insult to the intelligence of the American people.”
Local defense lawyer Thomas Dickey is expected to represent Mangione at the afternoon hearing and declined comment before the hearing.
He was charged with murder hours after he was arrested Monday in the killing of Brian Thompson, who led the United States’ largest medical insurance company.
Mangione remained jailed in Pennsylvania, where he was initially charged with possession of an unlicensed firearm, forgery and providing false identification to police. Manhattan prosecutors have obtained an arrest warrant, a step that could help expedite his extradition from Pennsylvania.
Court officials have said that Mangione does not yet have an attorney who can comment on the allegations. Asked at Monday’s arraignment whether he needed a public defender, Mangione asked whether he could “answer that at a future date.”
Here’s what we know about him and what investigators say they’ve discovered so far:
Is there a motive behind the killing?
The suspect likely was motivated by his anger with what he called “parasitic” health insurance companies and a disdain for corporate greed, a law enforcement bulletin obtained by The Associated Press said.
Mangione wrote that the U.S. has the most expensive health care system in the world and that profits of major corporations continue to rise while “our life expectancy” does not, according to the bulletin, based on a review of his hand-written notes and social media posts.
Ammunition found near Thompson’s body bore the words “delay,” “deny” and “depose,” mimicking a phrase used by insurance industry critics.
But a manifesto found with Mangione at the time of his arrest may provide more insights.
Police found a three-page document with writings suggesting that Mangione had “ill will toward corporate America,” Kenny said.
The handwritten document “speaks to both his motivation and mindset,” Tisch said.
A law enforcement official who wasn’t authorized to discuss the investigation publicly and spoke with The Associated Press on condition of anonymity said the document included a line in which Mangione claimed to have acted alone.
“To the Feds, I’ll keep this short, because I do respect what you do for our country. To save you a lengthy investigation, I state plainly that I wasn’t working with anyone,” the document said, according to the official.
It also had a line that said, “I do apologize for any strife or traumas but it had to be done. Frankly, these parasites simply had it coming.”
Where Mangione was arrested and how
Mangione was sitting in the rear of the McDonald’s wearing a blue medical mask and looking at a laptop computer, court documents said. A customer saw him and an employee called 911, said Kaz Daughtry, an NYPD deputy commissioner.
Altoona Police Officer Tyler Frye said he and his partner recognized the suspect immediately when he pulled down his mask. “We just didn’t think twice about it. We knew that was our guy,” he said.
When one of the officers asked if he’d been to New York recently, he “became quiet and started to shake,” according to a criminal complaint based on their accounts of the arrest.
Images of Mangione released Tuesday by Pennsylvania State Police showed him pulling down his mask in the corner of the McDonald’s while holding what appeared to be hash browns and wearing a winter jacket and beanie. In another photo from a holding cell, he stood unsmiling with rumpled hair.
Suspect had a ‘ghost gun,’ police say
In his backpack, police found a black, 3D-printed pistol and a 3D-printed black silencer, the complaint said. Such ghost guns can be assembled at home from parts without a serial number, making them difficult to trace. The pistol had a metal slide and plastic handle with a metal threaded barrel.
He was taken into custody at about 9:15 a.m., police said.
Mangione had clothing and a mask similar to those worn by the shooter and a fraudulent New Jersey ID matching one the suspect used to check into a New York City hostel before the shooting, NYPD Commissioner Jessica Tisch said.
Mangione also had a passport and $10,000 in cash — $2,000 of it in foreign currency, authorities said. Mangione, who said Hawaii was his most recent address, disputed the amount.
Mangione was arraigned and ordered held without bail during a brief court hearing. Asked if he needed a public defender, he asked if he could “answer that at a future date.” He eventually will be extradited to New York to face charges in connection with Thompson’s death, Kenny said.
Who is Luigi Mangione?
NYPD Chief of Detectives Joseph Kenny said Mangione was born and raised in Maryland, has ties to San Francisco and a last known address in Honolulu.
Mangione attended an elite Baltimore prep school, graduating as valedictorian in 2016, according to the school’s website. He went on to earn undergraduate and graduate degrees in computer science in 2020 from the University of Pennsylvania, a school spokesperson said.
One of his cousins is a Maryland state legislator and his family bought a country club north of Baltimore in the 1980s. On Monday, police blocked off an entrance to the property, which public records link to the suspect’s parents. A swarm of reporters and photographers gathered outside.
According to NBC News, Mangione once belonged to a group of Ivy League gamers who played assassins.
In the game, called “Among Us,” some players are secretly assigned to be killers in space who perform other tasks while trying to avoid suspicion from other players.
Alejandro Romero, who attended the University of Pennsylvania with Mangione and was a member of the same Discord group, said he was shocked when news broke on social media that Mangione had been taken into police custody.
“I just found it extremely ironic that, you know, we were in this game and there could actually be a true killer among us,” he said.
“As soon as his photo and name popped up on X, my friend texted me asking if I knew him, and then either I was calling some 10 friends or they were calling me,” Romero added. “I didn’t speak to anybody today who wasn’t already aware of what had happened.”
Mangione went from Philadelphia to Pittsburgh after the shooting, and likely “was in a variety of locations across the state,” said Lt. Col. George Bivens of the Pennsylvania State Police said.
“Based on everything we have seen, he was very careful with trying to stay low profile, avoid cameras — not all that successfully in some cases, but that was certainly the effort he was making,” Bivens said.
From January to June 2022, Luigi Mangione lived at Surfbreak, a “co-living” space at the edge of touristy Waikiki in Honolulu.
Like other residents of the shared penthouse catering to remote workers, Mangione underwent a background check, said Josiah Ryan, a spokesperson for owner and founder R.J. Martin.
“Luigi was just widely considered to be a great guy. There were no complaints,” Ryan said. “There was no sign that might point to these alleged crimes they’re saying he committed.”
At Surfbreak, Martin learned Mangione had severe back pain from childhood that interfered with many aspects of his life, from surfing to romance, Ryan said.
“He went surfing with R.J. once but it didn’t work out because of his back,” Ryan said, but noted that Mangione and Martin often went together to a rock-climbing gym.
Mangione left Surfbreak to get surgery on the mainland, Ryan said, then later returned to Honolulu and rented an apartment.
Martin stopped hearing from Mangione six months to a year ago.
Mangione family statement
The family of Luigi Nicholas Mangione, the 26-year-old man suspected in the brazen Manhattan killing of United Healthcare’s CEO, released a statement after Mangione was arrested and charged with murder Monday.
“Our family is shocked and devastated by Luigi’s arrest,” the statement, posted to X by Nino Mangione, said. “We offer our prayers to the family of Brian Thompson and we ask people to pray for all involved,” the statement continued.
According to his profile on X, Nino is a Republican member of the Maryland House of Delegates and Baltimore County.
The full statement can be found below:
A Statement From The Mangione Family Regarding Luigi Mangione pic.twitter.com/6E6E2CfgFv
— Nino Mangione (@NinoMangione42) December 10, 2024
What charges does Mangione face?
Late Monday, Manhattan prosecutors filed murder and other charges against Mangione, according to an online court docket. He remained jailed in Pennsylvania, where he was charged with possession of an unlicensed firearm, forgery and providing false identification to police.
Who was Brian Thompson?
Thompson, a father of two, was named CEO for Minnesota-based UnitedHealthcare in April 2021, having served as a leader of numerous departments within the company prior, according to his bio on their site.
UnitedHealthcare is the largest provider of Medicare Advantage plans in the country and also manages health insurance coverage for employers and state-and federally funded Medicaid programs. It is the insurance arm of the health care giant UnitedHealth Group Inc., which is also based in Minnesota.
The company was scheduled to have its annual meeting with investors Wednesday morning, according to a company media advisory. It is believed Thompson was arriving early for that meeting to help set up, police said.
“We are deeply saddened and shocked at the passing of our dear friend and colleague Brian Thompson, the CEO of UnitedHealthcare,” UnitedHealth Group said in a statement. “Brian was a highly respected colleague and friend to all who worked with him. We are working closely with the New York Police Department and ask for your patience and understanding during this difficult time. Our hearts go out to Brian’s family and all who were close to him.”
Thompson’s wife described him as “a wonderful person with a big heart” and someone “who lived life to the fullest.”
“He will be greatly missed by everybody. Our hearts our broken and we are completely devastated by this news. He touched so many lives. We ask everybody to respect our privacy during this time,” Paulette Thompson told KARE 11.
from NBC Chicago https://ift.tt/tUqzY0f
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