Brian Thompson Murder Latest: UnitedHealthcare CEO Assassin Suspect Luigi Mangione, 26, Charged With Exec's Murder after Being Snared with 'Ghost Gun' and Fake IDs
Luigi Mangione, left, is charged with the murder of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson/
Dec. 9 2024, Updated 12:22 p.m. ET
The "person of interest" arrested over last week's fatal shooting of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson in New York City has been charged with the insurance firm boss' brutal gun murder.
RadarOnline.com revealed how Luigi Mangione, 26, was taken into custody at a McDonald's in the town of Altoona, Pennsylvania, about 280 miles (450km) west of New York City on Monday after a customer at the fast-food outlet recognised him.
We can now report the Ivy League graduate from a high-flying Maryland family was found in possession of a 3D-printed gun and a handwritten document that indicated "motivation and mindset", according to cops.
Mangione appeared in a Pennsylvania court to be arraigned on five initial counts and was denied bail – and just hours later, New York investigators charged him with murder and four other counts including firearms charges.
He was initially detained in Altoona, Pennsylvania, after a McDonald's customer believed he resembled the person in photos released by the New York Police Department.
Mangione, from Towson, Maryland, was said to have several fake IDs, a "manifesto" criticizing the healthcare industry's for-profit model, as well as a similar gun and suppressor as the one used to fatally shoot the CEO in Manhattan on Wednesday, December 4.
Luigi Mangione, 26, is from Towson, Maryland.
Altoona police responded to a McDonald's patron's 911 call.
Authorities detained Mangioned and searched him, leading to the discovery of the fake IDs – one of which NYPD is said to believe was used to check into a hostel days prior to Thompson's killing.
According to his social media accounts, Mangione graduated with a M.S.E. and B.S.E. in Computer Science from the University of Pennsylvania. He listed himself as a co-founder of AppRoar Studios.
The NYPD, who is said to have agents en route to Pennsylvania, previously said they believed the suspect in the case had fled New York City via bus. Security camera footage caught him entering the George Washington Bridge Bus Station on 178th Street but not leaving.
Police were called to a McDonald's in Altoona, Pennsylvania, after a customer saw a resemblance between Mangione and NYPD suspect photos.
Thompson was believed to be targeted by the suspect after surveillance footage captured the shooter loitering outside a hotel while several pedestrians passed by. When Thompson approached, the shooter stepped out and gunned him down.
At the scene, shell casings inscribed with "delay, deny, defend" were recovered further pointing to a possible motive for the attack. A 2010 book on insurance companies, also entitled Delay Deny Defend, critiqued the insurance industry and exposed common tactics for denying coverage.
While NYPD had glimpses of the shooter's unmasked face from surveillance footage, his identity and whereabouts remained a mystery.
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Mangione was said to have several fake IDs, a manifesto criticizing the health insurance industry, a gun and suppressor on him.
But after piecing together security camera footage, the suspect was believed to have fled the scene on an e-bike toward central park.
Some of his discarded belongings have been discovered in the city, but offered little clues to authorities.
A law enforcement source said a backpack believed to be owned by suspect was found in Central Park on Friday. Inside, Monopoly game money and a Tommy Hilfiger jacket were found.
A backpack believed to be belonging to the suspect was recovered with Monopoly money and a jacket inside.
Additionally, a partial finger print found on a "burner phone" thought to be used by the suspect was recovered, as well as DNA from a water bottle and energy bar wrapper, but yielded no hits to potentially matches on law enforcement databases.
Police came up empty following two days of extensive searching in Central Park, including at a lake, Bethesda Fountain and the boathouse restaurant.
Authorities have also yet to recover the e-bike believed to be used by the suspect to flee the crime scene.
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