Fingerprints, Ballistics, Reddit Writings: Latest in CEO Murder

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(Bloomberg) — Luigi Mangione’s arrest this week over the fatal shooting of UnitedHealth Group Inc. executive Brian Thompson in Manhattan has failed to fill in some key details of the shocking killing that has gripped the US.

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A national manhunt ended at a McDonald’s restaurant in Altoona, Pennsylvania, where an employee recognized Mangione’s face. He was arrested in possession of a homemade gun, a pile of cash and a manifesto decrying the health care industry.

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He was locally charged with possessing an illegal gun and using fake identification. Far more serious charges came from authorities in New York, where he was quickly accused of second-degree murder and other crimes. Mangione appeared in court Tuesday with a lawyer to say he will fight the effort to move him back to New York, touching off legal wrangling that could take weeks to play out.

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Investigators were able to match the gun Mangione carried at the time of his arrest to the weapon used to kill Thompson with three spent shell casings that were found at the scene outside the Hilton Hotel in Midtown, New York City Police Commissioner Jessica Tisch said at a news conference Wednesday. The New York Police Department’s crime lab was also able to match Mangione to fingerprints found on both a water bottle and an energy bar recovered near the scene, she said.

Thomas Dickey, an Altoona lawyer for Mangione, earlier urged the public to withhold judgment. He didn’t return calls seeking comment on the findings Wednesday.

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“If you’re an American, you believe in the American criminal justice system, you have to presume him to be innocent,” said Dickey outside the courthouse Tuesday in Hollidaysburg, Pennsylvania. “None of us would want anything other than that.”

While New York authorities say Mangione engaged in careful planning before the attack, some questions persist.

What was his motive?

Prosecutors don’t have to prove motive in a murder case. But Jessica Tisch, the New York Police commissioner, said the manifesto, the text of which was seen by Bloomberg, “speaks to both his motivation and mindset.”

“Frankly, these parasites simply had it coming,” Mangione wrote. He contrasted the high cost of US health care with the country’s declining life expectancy rates, and incorrectly referred to UnitedHealth as the fourth-largest company by market capitalization. (Before the shooting, the company was 14th-largest on the S&P 500 index.)

“It has grown and grown, but as our life expectancy?” he wrote. “Evidently I am the first to face it with such brutal honesty.” He added that he acted alone.

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His note referenced a notebook, which CNN reported was found by investigators with a to-do list for his plans. He said a targeted killing of a CEO “at his own bean counting conference” would avoid killing “innocents,” unlike the use of a bomb.

As he was led into the Blair County Courthouse on Tuesday, a handcuffed Mangione flashed anger at reporters shouting questions at him.

“It’s clearly unjust and an insult to the intelligence of the American people,” he yelled, prompting a sheriff’s officer to grab him by the back of the neck.

The words “delay,” “depose” and “denied” were written on shell casings and a live round recovered in front of the hotel where Thompson was shot, providing investigators with potential clues. 

Traffic on social media accounts also speculated about a possible surfing accident and unsuccessful back surgery, which went unconfirmed. A spokesperson for Surfbreak, a co-living space in Oahu, Hawaii where Mangione had stayed, said he had been suffering pain from a misaligned vertebrae. A Goodreads account in Mangione’s name lists at least five books about chronic back pain and fitness, and his X account banner features an X-ray image of a lower back with spinal screws that are often inserted during surgery. 

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A since-deleted Reddit account reportedly tied to Mangione said his back issues intensified with surfing and then slipping on a piece of paper, according to the New York Times. He eventually had a spinal fusion surgery in July 2023, which he promptly knew “was the right decision” and encouraged others to do so, the paper reported. He also posted about suffering from brain fog and irritable bowel syndrome. His only reference to insurance coverage was saying his testing was covered by Blue Cross Blue Shield, according to the paper.

Where did he go after the shooting?

New York Police Department officials have said that after the pre-dawn shooting, Mangione rode a bicycle through Central Park and took a cab to a bus station near the George Washington Bridge. They believe he then took a bus out of town. But it’s unclear how or why he ended up in Altoona, which is about 280 miles (451 kilometers) west of Manhattan.

In court on Tuesday, prosecutors said Mangione was arrested while possessing a gun, a silencer and ammunition, as well as $8,000 in US dollars, $2,000 in foreign currency and a passport. He also carried Faraday bags, which block signals from laptops and cell phones, as well as additional face masks. The cash and passport suggest Mangione wasn’t intending to stay.

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The officer who arrested Mangione told reporters Monday that when he asked Mangione if he’d been to New York City, he became “visibly nervous” and “started shaking.”

When an officer asked Mangione why he lied about his name, he said: “I clearly shouldn’t have.” They arrested him for forgery and providing false information to law enforcement. He was handcuffed and searched, then taken to the police station. A black pistol and a silencer, both of which had been made with a 3D printer, were found in his backpack.

The pistol had a metal slide and a plastic handle with a metal threaded barrel, and one loaded Glock magazine with six nine-millimeter rounds. A loose round was also found in the backpack.

At a news conference on Tuesday, Altoona Deputy Police Chief Derek Swope said: “We are following up with his movements within the city” and helping the Pennsylvania State Police investigate the matter. 

How did such a high achiever end up as a murder suspect?

This is a central mystery that has emerged since Mangione’s arrest on Monday morning. He was the valedictorian of his prestigious all-boys prep school in Baltimore. At the University of Pennsylvania, he earned both bachelor’s and master’s degrees in engineering, computer and information science, and he founded the university’s first video-game development club.

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He spent time in Hawaii, far from his family in the Baltimore area. Traffic on social media accounts seemed to indicate that family members were trying to locate Mangione as recently as two weeks ago, though it wasn’t possible to verify the accuracy of the posts which have since been taken down by X. Mangione’s mother reported him missing to San Francisco police in November, according to the San Francisco Standard.

What’s been the public reaction?

Many have decried the crime as cold-blooded murder and a heinous act of violence, while others have used the shooting as a basis to air their anger toward the health insurance industry. Others on social media have hailed Mangione, and gone as far as to suggest that the killing was justified.

On Monday night, Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro railed against those who “have looked to celebrate” instead of condemning Thompson’s killer.

“In some dark corners this killer is being hailed as a hero,” the governor said. “Hear me on this, he is no hero.”

On Tuesday, Swope said: “This is clearly a very polarized case. We have received some threats against our officers in the building here. We’ve started investigating some threats against some citizens in our community.”

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Some health insurers have scrubbed information about their executives from their websites and are weighing closing public access to offices. Companies are also tracking call-center activity and making sure consumer complaints are taken seriously, according to a person in the industry who asked not to be identified.

The NYPD is on alert for “a risk that a wide range of extremists may view Mangione as a martyr and an example to follow,” according to a law enforcement document reviewed by Bloomberg News. “Rhetoric may signal an elevated threat facing executives in the near-term.”

What happens next in the legal case?

Mangione’s lawyer said Tuesday he’s going to fight any effort to extradite him to New York.

Judge David Consiglio gave him 14 days to file papers requesting his release from custody. Consiglio said New York Governor Kathy Hochul has 30 days to request a warrant for Mangione’s extradition. Hochul vowed to do so.

Once in New York, Mangione would be taken into custody and arraigned before a state judge. He would enter a plea of guilty or not guilty. 

Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg’s office would then present evidence behind closed doors to a grand jury, which will hear testimony from witnesses, see evidence offered by prosecutors and vote in secret on whether to charge Mangione in an indictment. 

—With assistance from Nacha Cattan.

(Updates with fingerprints, ballistic findings in fourth paragraph and concerns about threats to insurance executives in 29th paragraph.)

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