Murder of a health insurance giant: these questions that arise after the arrest of Luigi Mangione

It took five days of tracking to get their hands on Luigi Mangione. Unknown to the general public until a few hours ago, this 26-year-old man is now the number 1 suspect in the murder of Brian Thompson. A case that is making headlines in the United States, where Americans are trying to understand what could have pushed this individual to assassinate the boss of a health insurance giant.

Who is Luigo Mangione?

The profile drawn suggests that he is a good young man in all respects. Luigi Mangione was presented by the police as a native of Maryland (north-east). According to the Baltimore Banner, he comes from a wealthy Italian-American family, with a grandfather, who died in 2008, a real estate developer and owner of country clubs, retirement homes and a local radio station.

If his profile is intriguing, it is because nothing, for the moment, allows us to understand his motivations. According to his LinkedIn account, Luigi Mangione worked as a statistics engineer for the online car dealership True Car. A spokesperson for the group said he had not been employed since 2023, without providing further details. His Instagram profile doesn’t allow us to learn much more, except that he posted a few photos, often with friends, in 2018, 2019 and 2021.

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What do we know about the murder weapon?

The murder scene was filmed by a CCTV camera, before being seen by millions of people. On the other hand, investigators have been trying to find out for several days what weapon was used. The police therefore considered the hypothesis that the shooter used a long-barreled veterinary pistol, normally used to euthanize animals. Except that, according to the authorities, in recent hours they found a kit firearm, “which could have been made by a 3D printer“and a silencer, similar to those used by the killer. Luigi Mangione also carried a fake New Jersey ID card”matching the identity used to check into a New York hotel.”

What are his motivations?

A three-page handwritten document evoking his “hostility towards American companies“, was seized, police said. According to American media reports, not confirmed by the police, the words “delay“(delay) and “deny“(refusal) – terms evoking rejections of claims for compensation for care by insurance companies – were written on the shell casings found at the crime scene.

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Why is this murder causing controversy?

If the case is exciting across the Atlantic, it is in particular because of the profile of the victim. Brian Thompson was in fact at the head of UnitedHealth Group, which insures 51 million people and works with government programs such as Medicare, the health insurance system for seniors. If his death in the middle of the street caused a lot of emotion, it was also accompanied by hateful comments on social networks against American health insurance programs, illustrating deep anger towards a lucrative system accused to enrich themselves on the backs of patients.

For some, the alleged killer literally became a star. When his name was revealed, Luigi Mangione’s alleged social networks went into turmoil: an Instagram profile, which could be his, went from 2,000 to more than 50,000 subscribers in a few hours. “They better let you go free, you’re a hero“, commented an Internet user on this Instagram profile, accessible to all, referring to speculation that the suspect could have acted to take revenge for a dispute with this insurance.

Faced with the scale of the controversy, the authorities broke their silence. “We don’t kill people in cold blood for political reasons or to express a point of view“reacted Monday the Democratic Governor of Pennsylvania, Josh Shapiro. “This killer is hailed as a hero. Listen to me carefully, he’s not a hero.” he insisted.