A 26-year-old man has been charged with murder following last week’s fatal shooting of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson in New York.
Luigi Mangione was arrested Monday at a McDonald’s in the town of Altoona, Pennsylvania, after a fast-food customer recognized him.
An Ivy League graduate from a prominent Maryland family, he was found in possession of a gun and a handwritten document expressing “ill will” toward corporate America, according to police.
People who knew him told US media that he suffered from a painful back injury and had withdrawn socially in recent months.
Mr. Thompson, 50, was fatally shot in the back Wednesday morning outside the Hilton Hotel in Midtown Manhattan where UnitedHealthcare, the medical insurance giant he headed, was holding an investors’ meeting.
Police say he was the target of a planned assassination.
Mr. Mangione initially appeared in a Pennsylvania court Monday, charged with possession of a firearm without a license and other charges.
He was handcuffed at the wrists and ankles and appeared calm during the hearing, occasionally looking around at those present, including the media.
Hours later, New York investigators charged him with murder and four other counts, including gun-related charges.
Last week’s shooting sparked a massive manhunt, with New York City investigators using one of the world’s largest digital surveillance systems as well as police dogs, drones and divers in a Central Park lake to search for the attacker.
Investigators revealed that Mr Mangione’s discovery came as a complete surprise, as his name had not appeared on a list of suspects until Monday.
It was ultimately a customer at McDonald’s in Altoona who recognized the suspect from media coverage and alerted an employee, who then notified the police.
When police arrived, Mr. Mangione showed them a fake New Jersey driver’s license bearing the name Mark Rosario, according to court documents.
A search of his backpack uncovered what police called a “ghost gun” – which may have been 3D printed – and a magazine loaded with six rounds of 9mm ammunition.
Prosecutors said he also carried a US passport and $10,000 (£7,840) in cash, including $2,000 in foreign currency, although Mr Mangione disputed the amount in court.
The three-page document found in his possession said: “These parasites planned it” and “I apologize for any conflict and trauma, but it had to be done,” a senior law enforcement official told the New York Times.
Investigators say the words “deny,” “defend” and “depose” were written on shell casings found at the scene of Mr. Thompson’s murder.
Officials believe this could be a reference to what critics call the “three Ds of insurance” — tactics used by insurance companies to reject patient payment requests in America’s complex health care system.
Earlier in the day, New York Police Commissioner Jessica Tisch said the gun and suppressor seized by investigators from the suspect were “both consistent with the weapon used in the murder” of Ms. .Thompson.
Mr. Mangione should now be given the opportunity to waive or contest his extradition to New York State.
Different US states have different laws and court systems, so there is a process for transferring fugitives that can take days or even weeks.
Mr Mangione’s family said they were “shocked and devastated” by his arrest and offered their prayers to Mr Thompson’s family.
His paternal grandparents, Nicholas and Mary Mangione, were real estate developers who purchased Turf Valley Country Club in 1978 and Hayfields Country Club in Hunt Valley in 1986.
One of his cousins is a Republican state legislator in Maryland.
As a teenager, Mr. Mangione attended an all-boys private school in Maryland, where he was valedictorian, a title generally awarded to students with the highest grades.
He graduated from the University of Pennsylvania, an Ivy League university.
His LinkedIn account indicates that he worked as a data engineer in California. TrueCar, a website for car buyers, confirmed that he had worked there but left in 2023.
Mr. Mangione spent time in a cohabiting surfing community in Hawaii called Surfbreak.
Sarah Nehemiah, who knew him then, told CBS News he left because of his back injury that worsened when he was surfing.
Several posts on an account on