Ivy League graduate Luigi Mangione, 26, charged with murdering UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson
10 December 2024, 05:46 | Updated: 10 December 2024, 08:03
An Ivy League university graduate from a wealthy family has been charged with the murder of the health insurance boss who was shot dead in New York by a hooded gunman armed with a silenced pistol.
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Suspect Luigi Mangione, 26, was found in a McDonalds in Pennsylvania - six days after Brian Thompson was killed outside a hotel.
Mangione was spotted by a member of the public eating at a McDonald’s. The individual believed he resembled the gunman wanted in connection with last week’s brazen shooting outside a Manhattan hotel.
The UnitedHealthCare CEO was shot several times outside the Hilton Hotel in Midtown Manhattan where he was set to speak at an event later in the day.
Mr Thompson, 50, was rushed to hospital but later died.
Mangione is an Ivy League graduate from a prominent Maryland real estate family. He was reportedly found carrying a ghost gun, fake IDs and rambling writings linking him to the ambush, authorities said.
Mr Thompson's death sparked a nationwide manhunt, as police desperately looked for clues of the suspect's location.
“At this time, he is believed to be our person of interest in the brazen targeted murder of Brian Thompson, CEO of United Healthcare,” New York City Police Commissioner Jessica Tisch said.
Speaking at a press conference on Monday, Tisch said a "combination of old-school detective work and new age technology" helped police track this suspected shooter.
Mangione was found with a "handwritten document" - described in some reports as a "manifesto."
He was sitting at a table in the rear of the McDonald's wearing a blue medical mask and looking at a laptop computer, documents said.
Police found Mangione after a McDonald's employee reported him to authorities.
Mangione has been arrested on firearm charges, police confirmed.
When arrested, he was in possession of a ghost gun that could have been made on a 3D printer, police said.
"We don't think there's any specific threats to other people mentioned in that document," police said, "but it does seem he has some ill will towards corporate America".
It is believed he acted alone.
NYPD chief of detectives Joseph Kenny said Mangione was born and raised in Maryland, has ties to San Francisco and has a last known address in Honolulu.
CCTV shows moment Brian Thompson is shot in New York
Following the arrest, his family released a statement that said: "Unfortunately, we cannot comment on news reports regarding Luigi Mangione.
"We only know what we have read in the media.
"Our family is shocked and devastated by Luigi's arrest.
"We offer our prayers to the family of Brian Thompson and we ask people to pray for all involved.
"We are devastated by this news."
"Today at 9:14 am, Altoona Police Officers were dispatched to a McDonald’s Restaurant for reports of a male matching the description of the United Healthcare CEO murder suspect” the police department said in a statement.“
Officers made contact with the male who was subsequently arrested on unrelated charges."
On what appears to be his Goodreads account Mangione has read and reviewed the manifesto of Ted Kaczynski, the anit-capitalist known as the Unabomber.In the review, he writes: "These companies don’t care about you, or your kids, or your grandkids.
"They have zero qualms about burning down the planet for a buck, so why should we have any qualms about burning them down to survive?
"We’re animals just like everything else on this planet, except we’ve forgotten the law of the jungle and bend over for our overlords when any other animal would recognize the threat and fight to the death for their survival."
'Violence never solved anything'” is a statement uttered by cowards and predators."
In images released by the NYPD, the suspect can be seen smiling before the attack.The attacker fled on foot and then on an e-bike towards Central Park, police said.
Footage has shown him slowly walking behind Mr Thompson, before shooting him several times in the back.
Detectives are said to have uncovered shell casings at the scene, inscribed with the words "deny", "defend" and "depose".
Police are now working to determine the meaning of the words and work out if they are linked to a motive, sources told ABC News.
Several shots were fired during the attack, with the gun briefly getting jammed before being cleared.
It comes after chilling CCTV images released by the NYPD showed the suspected killer in Starbucks minutes before the targeted attack.
