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New York prosecutors charge suspect with murder in death of UnitedHealthcare CEO
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Manhattan prosecutors Monday night filed murder and other charges against Luigi Mangione, 26, in the killing of UnitedHealthcare's CEO last week, according to online court documents.
Mangione is being held in Pennsylvania, where he was arrested Monday and arraigned on five charges that include carrying a gun without a license and lying about his identify. Police arrested him at a McDonald's in Altoona after Mangione was recognized from photos released by authorities.
UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson was shot to death Wednesday on a sidewalk just outside a Manhattan hotel. Police had been piecing together the movements of the suspect since the shooting.
It was not immediately clear when Mangione will appear in a New York courtroom to face the more serious charges. No attorney for him was listed on the court documents Monday night.
Earlier Monday, police in Altoona, Pennsylvania, arrested Mangione in connection with the fatal shooting of UnitedHealthcare's Thompson.
Mangione stood for a preliminary arraignment at the Blair County Courthouse on Monday evening, where he faced five charges including illegal possession of a firearm and forgery.
In a press conference following the arraignment, Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro hailed the police officers — including a six-month rookie on the force — who arrested Mangione and the McDonald's employee and patron who spotted Mangione dining at the Altoona fast food restaurant and alerted police.
At an earlier press conference announcing the suspect's arrest, Mangione was said to be a "person of interest" in the shooting that launched a nationwide manhunt and sparked heated discussions about the state of for-profit health care in the United States.
Police said he was found with a ghost gun believed to have been used in the killing, as well as a fake ID and a handwritten, three-page document indicating his motivation. NYPD Chief Detective Joseph Kenny said the document in Mangione's possession indicated some "ill will toward corporate America."
During the Monday evening press conference, law enforcement said Mangione was "visibly" shaken when an officer asked him if he had been to New York recently, helping officers confirm their suspicions that Mangione was the man pictured in widely circulated surveillance photos of the alleged shooter.
Officials said Mangione initially showed police a fake New Jersey ID, which was quickly proven bogus, leading to the initial forgery charge.
New York law enforcement are expected to submit their own charges against Mangione, and the process for extradition back to New York will begin. Officials are still investigating whether Mangione may have had help in committing the crime or evading police.
Thompson was shot dead in Manhattan on Wednesday in what New York police called a "brazen, targeted murder."
UnitedHealthcare said in a statement to NPR: "Our hope is today's apprehension brings some relief to Brian's family, friends, colleagues and the many others affected by this unspeakable tragedy. We thank law enforcement and will continue to work with them on this investigation. We ask that everyone respect the family's privacy as they mourn."
Thompson, who took charge of the health care enterprise in 2021, leaves behind a wife and two children.
Who is Luigi Mangione?
According to his LinkedIn profile, Mangione has worked as a data engineer at the car buying website TrueCar Inc. since 2020, and he most recently lived in Honolulu, Hawaii.
The 26-year-old fitness enthusiast had graduated as valedictorian of Baltimore's private Gilman School and went on to attend the University of Pennsylvania, where he received both bachelor's and master's degrees in computer science, with a focus on artificial intelligence.
Law enforcement officials say he does not have any known criminal history.
Social media pages appearing to belong to Mangione paint a complicated picture of the Ivy League-educated techie, who showed interest in philosophy and high-minded literature.
In one online review by "Luigi Mangione" of the book Industrial Society and Its Future, the anti-technology essay penned by the "Unabomber," Ted Kaczynski, the reviewer wrote: "It's easy to quickly and thoughtless write this off as the manifesto of a lunatic, in order to avoid facing some of the uncomfortable problems it identifies. But it's simply impossible to ignore how prescient many of his predictions about modern society turned out."
Elsewhere on social media, Mangione discussed topics like artificial intelligence, his religious agnosticism and his belief that porn should be regulated "no less than alcohol, cigarettes, and travel."
On X, he retweeted messages decrying the "woke mind virus," and appeared supportive of Elon Musk and Peter Thiel, two tech billionaires who helped thrust Donald Trump and JD Vance to their 2024 election victory — views that seemingly put him at odds with the mythos of a Robin Hood-type figure on a rampage against the wealthy.
Public response to the shooting was mixed
In the aftermath of the shooting, some vocal critics of the U.S. health care system expressed that the shooter's actions could have been the inevitable outcome of a system that prioritizes profits over people's well-being.
On social media, images of the suspected gunman — mask down and smiling in surveillance camera footage — were circulated as the face of a modern-day folk hero who had taken action against a system perceived to be rife with corruption.
As praise poured in for the act of violent vigilantism, some companies removed the biographical information and photos of their executive leadership from their websites.
On a Facebook page appearing to belong to Mangione, comments since his identification as a person of interest ranged from laudatory to insulting.
"I want to donate to your defense fund," one poster wrote in support.
"Thank you for your service, king," said another.
Others expressed their desire to see Mangione locked away for life or facing the death penalty.
"He's done with. Lock away the key. Murder is illegal, mkay?" one critic wrote.
On Monday evening, Pennsylvania Gov. Shapiro sharply criticized those who would praise the brazen killing of another person — even one in a controversial field like the for-profit health care industry — saying the shooter was a "coward," not a hero.
"Some attention in this case, especially online, has been deeply disturbing as some have looked to celebrate instead of condemning this killer," Shapiro said.
"In America, we do not kill people in cold blood to resolve policy differences or express a viewpoint. I understand people have real frustrations with our health care system," he said. "But I have no tolerance, nor should anyone, for one man using an illegal ghost gun to kill someone because he thinks his opinion matters most."
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