Luigi Mangione seen for first time since arrest over UnitedHealthcare CEO execution

Luigi Mangione, the man suspected of assassinating UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson, has been seen for the first time since his arrest. See the photo

The man suspected of assassinating a top health insurance executive on a New York City street has been seen for the first time as he was led out of a police car.

Luigi Mangione, 26, was being quizzed by Pennsylvania police after he was spotted at McDonald’s by an employee of the fast food restaurant in Altoona, about 440km west of Manhattan.

Police said the Ivy-league educated Mangione was found carrying a distinctive weapon and silencer similar to the one seen used in the brazen shooting of Brian Thompson.

Mangione’s mugshot has since been released as he gave a cold and defiant expression.

He has been charged him with forgery, carrying firearms without a license, tampering with records or identification, possessing an instrument of crime and providing false identification to law enforcement. He was also ordered to be held without bail.

Mangione was arrested after he was spotted at a McDonald’s. Picture: Facebook

Police said when they approached him at the McDonald’s restaurant, he was seen shaking before they asked him if he had been to New York City recently, according to the newly released criminal complaint.

The complaint states that the 26-year-old was found at a table where he was looking at a laptop. They then asked him to pull down his medical face mask to see his face and “immediately recognized him as the suspect.

One of the officers asked Mangione if he had been to New York recently and the alleged killer “became quiet and started to shake,” according to the document.

The officers also asked for his ID and Mangione handed them a fake New Jersey ID believed to be the same one he used to check into a Manhattan hostel before targeting Thompson.

He later revealed his real name when the cops asked why he lied and gave the fake ID.

“I clearly shouldn’t have,” Mangione replied, according to the complaint.

Luigi Mangione, 26, in a police mugshot taken hours after his arrest at a Pennsylvania McDonald's.

Mangione, who comes from a wealthy family, was allegedly also found with the same fake ID used at a New York hostel, as well as a three-page, handwritten manifesto.

He also had liked online quotes from “Unabomber’’ Ted Kaczynski and carried a manifesto saying “These parasites had it coming,” according to law-enforcement sources quoted by the New York Post.

NYPD Commissioner Jessica Tisch said Altoona police arrested Mangione on firearms charges, but more serious charges are expected to follow.

“At this time, he is believed to be our person of interest in the brazen targeted murder of Brian Thompson,” she said.

Luigi Mangione seen exiting a police car. Picture: Supplied

Mangione, who grew up in Maryland but last used a Hawaii address, was top of his 2016 graduating class at the Gilman School in Baltimore, where he played soccer, according to online sites.

He studied at the University of Pennsylvania, according to an interview with the Baltimore Fishbowl.

The weapon he was allegedly found with was a “ghost gun”, possibly 3D-printed, capable of firing 9mm rounds, police said.

The development in the case came on the day that a funeral for Mr Thompson was set to be held in Minnesota.

Members of the public watch as the New York City police department conducts an aquatic search near Bethesda Fountain in Central Park. Picture: Getty Images via AFP

Mr Thompson, a senior figure at UnitedHealthcare – one of America’s largest medical insurers – was shot dead last Wednesday morning in front of bystanders in an attack captured by a surveillance camera and since seen by millions.

A masked wanted for shooting top US health insurance executive Brian Thompson outside a New York hotel on December 4 in an apparently targeted hit. Picture: AFP

‘DEEPLY TWISTED’ ITEM FOUND IN ASSASSIN’S BACKPACK

The assassination of Mr Thompson in Manhattan last week outside of a Hilton Hotel captured the world’s attention.

And investigators are considering the motive was to expose the US healthcare industry by targeting one of its highest paid executives.

The masked gunman who shot dead top US health insurance executive Brian Thompson outside a New York hotel on December 4 left a backpack full of Monopoly money in Central Park. Picture: AFP

Bolstering the theory are carved words into the bullet casings such as “deny” and “delay”, referring to the rejection of patients’ health care insurance claims.

“This wasn’t just about taking a life,” Lieberman said. “This was about sending a message — a deeply twisted, deeply calculated one.”

“This was not an impulsive act,” she said.

The person of interest wanted for questioning in connection to the shooting of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson. Picture: AFP

Police believe the suspect spent 10 days in New York, including the day of thanksgiving, staying at a Manhattan hostel while planning the attack, and then taking a bus out of the city.

Surveillance footage captured Mangione allegedly fleeing toward Central Park on an e-bike immediately after the killing, where additional evidence, including the backpack, was later recovered.

A person of interest wanted for questioning in connection to the shooting of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson. New York's mayor said on December 7 "the net is tightening" on the man suspected of gunning down a top health insurance executive. Picture: AFP

‘UNIQUE WEAPON’ USED BY ASSASSIN

Police are probing whether the weapon used to kill the boss of a major US healthcare company was a “veterinary” gun commonly used to euthanise animals.

A spokesman from the New York Police Department said the murder weapon used in the assassination of Mr Thompson “appears to be a larger handgun” similar to the style of a veterinary gun.

“It’s a weapon commonly used on farms and ranches. If an animal has to get put down, the animal can be shot without causing a loud noise,” NYPD Chief of Detectives Joseph Kenny said.

The weapon is believed to be a modernised version of a World War II style gun called a Welrod, sources told The New York Post, and modern versions of the same gun are known as VP-9 or Station 6.

This is the firearm recovered at the scene. pic.twitter.com/FkDq520DGg

— NYPD NEWS (@NYPDnews) December 5, 2024

The killer was seen wearing the backpack in a nearby Starbucks prior to the shooting. Picture: X

NYPD finds bag possibly belonging to UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson’s killer https://t.co/Qah1hpYDZOpic.twitter.com/vVsq0zz1GU

— New York Post (@nypost) December 7, 2024

Chilling video shows the gunman shooting at United Healthcare CEO Brian Thompson. Picture: Supplied

CEO HAD NO SECURITY WITH HIM

Mr Thompson was shot multiple times in the back and leg just after 6.45am on Wednesday local time as he walked into the New York Hilton Midtown.

Shocking surveillance video showed the moment the masked shooter followed the CEO and fired at him.

The video shows the suspect approaching Thompson from behind and opening fire, calmly pausing to clear a brief gun jam.

UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson was gunned down in an alleged targeted attack on a New York street. Picture: AFP

Thompson did not have security with him at the time despite UnitedHealth Group having an in-house security team.

A terrified witness who was inches away from the shooting sprinted for her life as the suspect eerily walked away into an alley.

After the killing, the suspect got on a nearby e-bike and rode towards New York’s Central Park.

He was last seen on Central Park Drive, which is right outside the park grounds.

The man was spotted on CCTV ordering at Starbucks on West 56th Street and 6th Ave just two blocks from the shooting.

Sources claimed the suspect bought coffee, a water bottle and two health bars before the shooting.

He threw the bottle and coffee cup in the rubbish before he left the coffee chain, which police have reportedly recovered.

Before becoming CEO, Thompson held various leadership roles within UnitedHealth Group, including positions in finance and operations.

It has emerged that Thompson was one of the senior executives at the company investigated by the Department of Justice.

CEO AND WIFE ‘SPLIT’

Mr Thompson is survived by his wife Paulette and their two children.

According to the Wall Street Journal, the couple had been living separately for years in homes less than 2km from each other in Maple Grove, Minnesota.

It’s unclear exactly when they split, but Paulette, 51, notably kept her husband out of her work biography at the Park Nicollet Health Services clinic in Minneapolis, where she works as a physical therapist.

On Thursday AEDT, Paulette revealed her husband had been getting threats.

“There had been some threats,” Mrs Thompson told NBC News.

“I don’t know details. I just know that he said there were some people that had been threatening him.

“I can’t really give a thoughtful response right now. I just found this out and I’m trying to console my children.”

Family members remembered him as a hard working husband and dedicated father.

Elene Reveiz, Thompson’s sister-in-law, told the New York Times, “He was a good person, and I am so sad.”

UnitedHealth Group said it was “deeply saddened” by the news and described Thompson as a “dear friend.”

“Brian was a highly respected colleague and friend to all who worked with him,” the company said in a statement.

“We are working closely with the New York Police Department and ask for your patience and understanding during this difficult time. Our hearts go out to Brian’s family and all who were close to him.”