Luigi Mangione, the alleged killer of UnitedHealthcare CEO, Brian Thompson, was reported missing by his family in November following a back surgery.
According to police, his family members had become worried after losing contact with him. Before they reported him missing, they messaged his friends for help finding him.
To everyone’s surprise, Mangione eventually resurfaced as the suspect in the fatal shooting of Brian Thompson, the chief executive of UnitedHealthcare.
The Shooting
On Dec. 4, Brian Thompson, 50, was gunned down as he was walking to the Hilton from a hotel, where he was attending an annual investor conference.
According to officials, the suspect had ‘lay in wait for several minutes’ before approaching the chief executive and firing his weapon.
Police later determined that the weapon was a 9-mm pistol, one that resembled those that farmers used to put down animals.
The attack set off a manhunt, with authorities releasing videos and photos of the suspect, including footage of the shooting.
After several days, Mangione was arrested at a McDonald’s after being recognized by a worker. When police arrived, he was wearing a blue mask and was working on a laptop.
When asked to provide ID, he initially gave them a fake card but eventually became ‘silent’ once the officer asked whether or not he had been in New York recently. It was later determined that the fake ID was the same one he had used to stay at a New York hostel.
Officials also found a three-page manifesto that ‘spoke to his mindset and motivation’.
Mangione has since been charged with murder and is being held in Pennsylvania without bail.
During their investigation, detectives found that Mangione had suffered chronic back problems since he was a child and had posted about his struggles with spondylolisthesis on social media.
According to the post, which matches Mangione’s description, the condition became worse following a surfing accident and has caused him ‘intermittent numbness’.
The owner of Surfbreak, a Honolulu housing community where Mangione had stayed for several months, said the 26-year-old often struggled with back pain that would leave him bedridden for days.
Mangione eventually underwent surgery, where surgeons inserted screws into his spine. Meanwhile, he continued to allude to his ongoing health challenges on social media.
As he withdrew from social connections, many of his friends started to become concerned. His family, who is from Baltimore, Maryland, also became worried.
His First Court Appearance
Mangione appeared in court for the first time on Monday, where he was charged for the murder of Thompson. In addition to that, he also faces criminal counts for the possession of a silencer and weapon.
When he was arrested, Mangione carried with him a ‘ghost gun’, which was likely created by a 3D printer, as well as a suppressor.
While he mostly stayed silent during the hearing, he spoke a few words disputing the case that prosecutors presented.
According to prosecutors, Mangione had $10,000 cash with him, along with a bag that blocked mobile signals, which suggested ‘sophisticated criminal planning’.
Mangione defended himself by saying that he did not know where the money came from.
