The suspect in the killing of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson has been identified as Luigi Mangione, a 26-year-old Ivy League graduate.
Thompson’s murder on a midtown Manhattan street in broad daylight shocked many Americans but also sparked a torrent of outrage aimed at the US profit-driven healthcare industry, with many online sharing stories of terrible experiences for themselves or sick loved ones.
While the motive of this shooting is still unknown, early evidence suggests Mangione’s alleged actions could have been a political act. In addition to carrying a gun, a silencer and other items, Mangione was found to have been in possession of a handwritten, three-page “manifesto” criticizing health insurance companies for putting profits above care, according to senior law enforcement officials.
Chief law enforcement and intelligence analyst for CNN John Miller reportedly read the manifesto and said Mangione “talks about how these parasites had it coming” and “starts off basically saying: ‘I don’t want to cause any trauma, but it had to be done.’”
On the second page, Miller said, Mangione “really kind of goes into problems with the health industry. He raises the question: ‘Why do we have the most expensive healthcare in the world but we’re rated 42 in life expectancy around the world?’… talking about the healthcare industry and the need for violence.”
The US ranked 42 in life expectancy in 2007, per an Associated Press story from August 2007, and was ranked 49 as of 2022. Per a recent analysis in the Lancet, published on Saturday, the US is expected to fall to 66 out of 204 countries assessed by 2050.
Mangione was arrested in Altoona, Pennsylvania, on suspicion of being involved in last week’s shooting of Thompson. The suspect was taken into custody after being identified at a McDonald’s by an employee who recognized him.
“He was sitting there eating,” said Joseph Kenny, the New York City police department’s chief of detectives, at Monday afternoon’s press briefing.
Mangione was found carrying identification with his name on it, along with a fake New Jersey ID – the same that the man believed to be the gunman showed when he checked into a hostel on the Upper West Side of Manhattan on 24 November.
According to his LinkedIn page, the suspect lists himself as having both as bachelor’s and master of science engineering from the University of Pennsylvania.
A Penn spokesperson confirmed to the Guardian that Mangione had received his bachelor of science in engineering and master of science in engineering at the school.
His LinkedIn page also indicates that he’s currently employed as a data engineer for TrueCar, Inc, where he has worked since 2020. In a statement, TrueCar, Inc told the Guardian that Mangione has not been with their company since 2023.
“While we generally don’t comment on personnel matters, we can confirm that Luigi Mangione has not been an employee of our company since 2023,” they said.
The UPenn graduate, now in custody, arrived in Altoona on a Greyhound bus, according to the New York Times. He is also believed to have taken a Greyhound when he arrived in New York City 10 days prior to the shooting.
Mangione was a valedictorian at Gilman High School in 2016, where he had expressed his desire to study at the University of Pennsylvania. He was quoted as a video game enthusiast and eventually joined the university’s video game club.
Per the suspect’s social media presence, he appears to have been an active poster up until May or June of 2024 before his activity tapered off. He was also particularly active on Goodreads, where he previously liked online quotes from “Unabomber’’ Ted Kaczynski.
Mangione was born and raised in Maryland and has lived in San Francisco and Honolulu. He has no prior arrest history in New York.