Luigi Mangione Charged with Second-Degree Murder for Shooting UnitedHealthcare CEO
Luigi Mangione, the man alleged to have killed United Healthcare CEO Brian Thompson in New York last week, has been charged with murder after police arrested him Monday. On Monday, Mangione was arrested at a McDonald's in Altoona, Pennsylvania, after an employee and a customer recognized him from a wanted poster. A five-day manhunt had ensued after Mangione shot and killed Thompson, who was walking on a sidewalk outside a NYC Hilton hotel as he was scheduled to speak at a shareholder conference last week (Dec. 4).
When approached by Altoona police on Monday, Mangione was asked to remove his face covering, in which they recognized him as the suspect alleged in Thompson's murder. He also gave them a fake ID and a fake name and "became quiet and started to shake" when asked if he had recently been to New York.
According to Fox News, Mangione allegedly had several writings denouncing the healthcare industry and a ghost gun, which was similar to the one believed to have been used against Thompson. Officers initially charged him with possession of an unlicensed firearm, providing false identification to police and forgery, while New York City prosecutors charged him with second-degree murder.
He was also charged with criminal possession of a weapon (loaded firearm), possession of a forged instrument, and criminal possession of a weapon (firearm silencer).
Mangione's cousin, Maryland State Delegate Nino Mangione, released a statement Monday night stating that the family is "shocked and devastated" by his arrest and cannot comment on the matter.
"We only know what we have read in the media. Our family is shocked and devastated by Luigi's arrest," the statement reads.
The Mangione family also shared they are praying for Thompson's family and asked people to pray for all involved.
"We are devastated by this news, "the statement concluded.
Mangione, 26, graduated top of his class from the elite Gilman School in Baltimore in 2016 and delivered the valedictorian speech at his graduation. He later graduated from the University of Pennsylvania with a bachelor's and master's degree in engineering and was part of the Eta Kappa Nu Honor Society for Electrical and Computer Engineering.
"He seemed like a smart kid, he was always doing the right thing, it seemed like," a former classmate, who was shocked by the arrest, told Fox News Digital Monday. "Wasn't crazy."
According to the New York Post, several friends who went to Gilman with Mangione said that he went dark after undergoing back surgery several months prior to the shooting and allegedly went "crazy."
"When I first interviewed him, before he moved in, I remember he said he had a back issue, and he was hoping to get stronger in Hawaii," RJ Martin, a former friend and roommate in Hawaii, told CNN.
He noted that Mangione's were so "traumatic and difficult" that one basic surfing lesson left him bedridden for a week. Martin also said that Mangione sent him images of the X-rays when he underwent surgery.
"It looked heinous, with just giant screws going into his spine," he said.
According to Jack Mac, a staffer at sports and pop culture outlet Barstool Sports, other former high school friends said Mangione went "absolutely crazy" following the surgery.
"Spoke with a source that had a lot of friends that went to high school with Luigi Mangione. What keeps coming up is a back surgery that 'changed everything' for him and he went 'absolutely crazy,'" Mac wrote on X.
Spoke with a source that had a lot of friends that went to high school with Luigi Mangione.
— Jack Mac (@JackMacCFB) December 9, 2024
What keeps coming up is a back surgery that “changed everything” for him and he went “absolutely crazy.”
Checks out with his GoodReads history and the X-Ray in his header. pic.twitter.com/dsrXMQcqB2
Photo Credit: ©Jeff Swensen/Stringer
Originally published December 10, 2024.
