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Brian Thompson, 50, CEO of the American health insurance company United Healthcare (UHC), was murdered on the morning of December 4 near the Hilton Hotel in Manhattan. Since this premeditated murder, the authorities have mobilized to find the culprit. The several-day manhunt ended Monday, December 9, with the arrest of Luigi Mangione, the first suspect in the case. The alleged perpetrator of the crime may have been motivated by anger against the privatized US healthcare system, according to evidence collected so far.
After analyzing footage from surveillance cameras located in and around the Hilton Hotel, the New York City Police Department shared images of the man sought in the investigation on the murder of Brian Thompson. Days after the images were made public, an employee at a McDonald’s in Altoona, Pennsylvania, contacted authorities saying he recognized the suspect, a 26-year-old man identified as Luigi Mangione.
Authorities say Mangione was carrying a fake New Jersey ID, matching the one he used to check into a New York hostel where he was staying before the shooting. A three-page handwritten document was in Mangione’s possession at the time of his arrest at the McDonald’s in Altoona. According to a police official interviewed by CNN, it included the phrases “those parasites deserved it” and “I apologize for any conflict and trauma, but it had to be done.” These words reflect frustration with the country’s health system.
With these pieces of evidence, as well as the shell casings recovered from the crime scene, engraved with the words “deny”, “defend” and “depose”, the authorities are only beginning to understand the motivations behind this murder. At this time, it remains unclear whether the suspect was denied coverage by Thompson’s insurance company, which could be a potential motive. Indeed, he suffered from spondylolisthesis (partial displacement of a bone in the lower back) and, as his condition worsened, he underwent an operation earlier this year. Moreover, on his X account, he published an image showing an x-ray of a spine with stabilizing material attached to it.
Photo of Luigi Mangione provided by the Altoona Police Department.
A promising young man, apparently without history
Mangione came from a wealthy Italian-American family in Baltimore. According to the local newspaper Baltimore Bannerthey own the Hayfields Country Club as well as numerous businesses, a retirement home and a radio station. Mangione has always been a brilliant student. He was a valedictorian while attending Gilman School, but also excelled in high school, where he graduated in 2016. Four years later, Mangione earned a master’s degree in computer science at the University of Pennsylvania. “We didn’t think that a person of privilege or wealth, from a family known for doing so much for the community, could do something like this “Thomas Maronick, a defense lawyer who knows the Mangione family, told the BBC.
After graduating from college, Mangione worked as a computer engineer for TrueCar before moving to Hawaii in 2022. According to RJ Martin, a former roommate of Mangione’s in Honolulu, he helped run a book club and also took a surfing lesson. However, an accident occurred shortly after, which left him bedridden for a week. Still, according to Martin, Mangione was “terrified of the consequences.” “He knew it wasn’t possible to date and have sex because of his back problem. I remember him saying that to me, and it broke my heart“, Martin told the New York Times.
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However, although Martin’s statements suggest that Mangione harbored no apparent grudge, the evidence mounting against him is linked to his chronic back pain and his anger at the current health care system, indications of his involvement. . Moreover, according to investigators, in 2022, Mangione consulted documents on the management of back pain from his Goodreads account. In January, he gave four stars to a text by former Unabomber activist Theodore Kaczynski called “Industrial Society and Its Future.” In his review, Mangione described Kaczynski as a “political revolutionary.”
Mangione faces several charges in Pennsylvania, including illegal possession of weapons and use of forgery. Accused of the murder of Brian Thompson, he will also have to answer for his actions before the New York courts. Contesting his transfer, his lawyers have 14 days to present their arguments.
