Luigi Mangione’s arrest this week over the fatal shooting of UnitedHealth Group executive Brian Thompson has failed to fill in some key details of the shocking killing that has gripped the US.
A national manhunt ended at a McDonald’s restaurant in Altoona, Pennsylvania, where an employee recognized Mangione’s face. Altoona police arrested him with a homemade gun, a pile of cash and a manifesto decrying the health-care industry.
He was locally charged with possessing an illegal gun and using fake identification. Far more serious charges came from authorities in New York, where he was quickly accused of second-degree murder and other crimes. Luigi Mangione appeared in court Tuesday with a lawyer to say he will fight the effort to move him back to New York, touching off legal wrangling that could take weeks to play out.
But while New York authorities say Mangione engaged in careful planning before the attack, some questions persist:
What was his motive?
Prosecutors don’t have to prove motive in a murder case and Mangione, like all defendants, is presumed innocent. But Jessica Tisch, the New York Police commissioner, said the manifesto “speaks to both his motivation and mindset.”
“Frankly, these parasites simply had it coming,” Mangione wrote. He juxtaposed the high cost of US health care with the country’s declining life expectancy rates. The suspect said he acted alone and was self-funded, according to a person familiar with the manifesto who declined to be identified. “Evidently I am the first to face it with such brutal honesty,” he wrote.
As he was led into the Blair County Courthouse on Tuesday, a handcuffed Mangione flashed anger at reporters shouting questions at him.
“It’s clearly unjust and an insult to the intelligence of the American people,” he yelled, prompting a sheriff’s officer to grab him by the back of the neck.
The words “delay,” “depose” and “denied” were written on shell casings and a live round recovered in front of the hotel where Thompson was shot, providing investigators with potential clues.
Traffic on social media accounts also speculated about a possible surfing accident and unsuccessful back surgery, which went unconfirmed. A Goodreads account in Mangione’s name lists at least five books about chronic back pain and fitness, and his X account banner features an X-ray image of a lower back with spinal screws that are often inserted during surgery.
Where did he go after the shooting?
New York Police Department officials have said that after the pre-dawn shooting, Mangione rode a bicycle through Central Park and took a cab to a bus station near the George Washington Bridge. They believe he then took a bus out of town. But it’s unclear how or why he ended up in Altoona, which is about 280 miles (451 kilometers) west of Manhattan.
In court on Tuesday, prosecutors said Mangione was arrested while possessing a gun, a silencer and ammunition, as well as $8,000 in US dollars, $2,000 in foreign currency and a passport. He also carried Faraday bags, which block signals from laptops and cell phones, as well as additional face masks. The cash and passport suggest Mangione wasn’t intending to stay.
The officer who arrested Mangione told reporters Monday that when he asked Mangione if he’d been to New York City, he became “visibly nervous” and “started shaking.”
When an officer asked Mangione why he lied about his name, he said: “I clearly shouldn’t have.” They arrested him for forgery and providing false information to law enforcement. He was handcuffed and searched, then taken to the police station. A black pistol and a silencer, both of which had been made with a 3D printer, were found in his backpack.
The pistol had a metal slide and a plastic handle with a metal threaded barrel, and one loaded Glock magazine with six nine-millimeter rounds. A loose round was also found in the backpack.
At a news conference on Tuesday, Altoona Deputy Police Chief Derek Swope said: “We are following up with his movements within the city” and helping the Pennsylvania State Police investigate the matter.
How did such a high achiever end up as a murder suspect?
This is a central mystery that has emerged since Mangione’s arrest on Monday morning. He was the valedictorian of his prestigious all-boys prep school in Baltimore. At the University of Pennsylvania, he earned both bachelor’s and master’s degrees in engineering, computer and information science, and he founded the university’s first video-game development club.
He spent time in Hawaii, far from his family in the Baltimore area. Traffic on social media accounts seemed to indicate that family members were trying to locate Mangione as recently as two weeks ago, though it wasn’t possible to verify the accuracy of the posts which have since been taken down by X.
What’s been the public reaction?
Many have decried the crime as cold-blooded murder and an heinous act of violence, while others have used the shooting as a basis to air their anger toward the health insurance industry. Others on social media have hailed Mangione, and gone as far as to suggest that the killing was justified.
On Monday night, Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro railed against those who “have looked to celebrate” instead of condemning Thompson’s killer.
“In some dark corners this killer is being hailed as a hero,” the governor said. “Hear me on this, he is no hero.”
On Tuesday, Swope said: “This is clearly a very polarized case. We have received some threats against our officers in the building here. We’ve started investigating some threats against some citizens in our community.”
What happens next in the legal case?
Mangione’s lawyer said Tuesday he’s going to fight any effort to extradite him to New York.
Judge David Consiglio gave him 14 days to file papers requesting his release from custody. Consiglio said New York Governor Kathy Hochul has 30 days to request a warrant for Mangione’s extradition. Hochul vowed to do so.
Once in New York, Mangione would be taken into custody and arraigned before a state judge. He would enter a plea of guilty or not guilty.
Bragg’s office would then present evidence behind closed doors to a grand jury, which will hear testimony from witnesses, see evidence offered by prosecutors and vote in secret on whether to charge Mangione in an indictment.
