(Headline USA) In a dramatic new wrinkle in a case that has rivited the media cycle with shocking twists and turns, the suspect in the killing of UnitedHealthcare’s CEO appeared to suggest outside a Pennsylvania courthouse that he had been framed for the brazen public murder, which took place in midtown Manhattan last week.
Luigi Nicholas Mangione struggled with deputies and shouted Tuesday while arriving for his court appearance, a day after he was arrested at an Altoona McDonald’s.
The 26-year-old Ivy League graduate emerged from a patrol car, spun toward reporters and shouted something partly unintelligible referring to an “insult to the intelligence of the American people” while deputies pushed him inside.
During the arraignment hearing, Mangione made several additional statements, according to CNN reports.
While many of the statements confirmed existing reporting, he also said the $10,000 in cash he had when apprehended was not his and must have been planted on him.
🚨CNN presents new facts on Luigi Mangione:
– The judge asked him about his identity. He confirmed that Luigi Mangione is his real name.
– He said he lived at various places over the years but mentioned his permanent identity was Hawaii.
– He said he worked for 3 years as a… pic.twitter.com/cnQIZzHe9G
— Autism Capital 🧩 (@AutismCapital) December 10, 2024
The claim emerged as conspiracies had begun to pick ups team online linking the accused killer to former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif.
Some unverified social-media reports claimed that UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson may have been prepared to testify against Pelosi for insider trading.
It was noted that after the leading U.S. insurer suffered a cyberattack earlier this year, Pelosi promptly invested in the cybersecurity firm Palo Alto Networks, which shortly thereafter was contracted to investigate the attack on the network.
Mangione hails from a prominent Maryland real estate family, which is where Pelosi originated. Her father, Thomas D’Alesandro, was a mayor of the city and was suspected of having Mafia ties.
🚨BREAKING: Newly Discovered Connection Between Nancy Pelosi & Luigi Mangione Raises Questions In UnitedHealth CEO Murder Investigation
Key Points
• Cyberattack Timeline: A major cyberattack on
UnitedHealth Group in February 2024 coincided with
Paul Pelosi's $4 million… pic.twitter.com/QssV1BWG8X— Chase Geiser (@realchasegeiser) December 10, 2024
At the brief hearing, defense lawyer Thomas Dickey informed the court that Mangione will not waive extradition to New York but instead wants a hearing on the issue. Mangione was denied bail after prosecutors raised concerns about public safety and a potential flight risk.
Mangione, wearing an orange prison jumpsuit, mostly stared straight ahead at the hearing, occasionally consulting papers, rocking in his chair or looking back at the gallery. At one point, he began to speak to respond to the court discussion but was quieted by his lawyer.
Although innocent until proven guilty, speculation has flown over the motives that the well-to-do 20something with a bright future might have had for jeopardizing his livelihood.
His social-media posts, and the accounts of friends suggested that Mangione may have suffered a debilitating back injury that limited his physical activity—including sexual intercourse—and caused him excruciating pain at times.
Possible motive? X-ray with screws in his back. #Luigimangione pic.twitter.com/DR3OYoD7sR
— Ben Sellers (@realbensellers) December 9, 2024
A law-enforcement bulletin obtained by the Associated Press said the suspect likely was motivated by his anger with what he called “parasitic” health insurance companies and a disdain for corporate greed.
He wrote that the U.S. has the most expensive health care system in the world and that profits of major corporations continue to rise while “our life expectancy” does not, according to the bulletin, based on a review of his hand-written notes and social media posts.
Mangione called “Unabomber” Ted Kaczynski a “political revolutionary” and may have found inspiration from the man who carried out a series of bombings while railing against modern society and technology, according to the police bulletin.
Mangione remained jailed in Pennsylvania, where he was initially charged with possession of an unlicensed firearm, forgery and providing false identification to police. Manhattan prosecutors have obtained an arrest warrant, a step that could help expedite his extradition from Pennsylvania.
Mangione was arrested in Altoona, Pennsylvania—about 230 miles west of New York City—after a McDonald’s customer recognized him and notified an employee, authorities said.
Officers found him sitting at a back table, wearing a blue medical mask and looking at a laptop, according to a Pennsylvania police criminal complaint.
He initially gave them a fake ID, but when an officer asked Mangione whether he’d been to New York recently, he “became quiet and started to shake,” the complaint says.
When he pulled his mask down at officers’ request, “we knew that was our guy,” rookie Officer Tyler Frye said.
Images of Mangione released Tuesday by Pennsylvania State Police showed him pulling down his mask in the corner of the McDonald’s while holding what appeared to be hash browns and wearing a winter jacket and beanie.
In another photo from a holding cell, he stood unsmiling with rumpled hair.
New York Police Commissioner Jessica Tisch said Mangione was carrying a gun like the one used to kill Thompson and the same fake ID the shooter had used to check into a New York hostel, along with a passport and other fraudulent IDs.
NYPD Chief of Detectives Joseph Kenny said Mangione also had a three-page, handwritten document that shows “some ill will toward corporate America.”
A law enforcement official who wasn’t authorized to discuss the investigation publicly and spoke with the Associated Press on condition of anonymity said the document included a line in which Mangione claimed to have acted alone.
“To the Feds, I’ll keep this short, because I do respect what you do for our country. To save you a lengthy investigation, I state plainly that I wasn’t working with anyone,” the document said, according to the official.
It also had a line that said, “I do apologize for any strife or traumas but it had to be done. Frankly, these parasites simply had it coming.”
Some social media accounts on Tuesday claimed to have obtained a manifesto.
I got the Luigi Mangione manifesto — the real one, not the fake one circulating online.
Here it is:https://t.co/bnlcbLxIuL
— Ken Klippenstein (@kenklippenstein) December 10, 2024
Pennsylvania prosecutor Peter Weeks said in court that Mangione was found with a passport and $10,000 in cash, $2,000 of it in foreign currency. Mangione disputed the amount.
Thompson, 50, was killed Wednesday as he walked alone to a Manhattan hotel for an investor conference. Police quickly came to see the shooting as a targeted attack by a gunman who appeared to wait for Thompson, came up behind him and fired a 9 mm pistol.
Investigators have said “delay,” “deny” and “depose” were written on ammunition found near Thompson’s body. The words mimic “delay, deny, defend,” a phrase used to criticize the insurance industry.
From surveillance video, New York investigators determined the shooter quickly fled the city, likely by bus.
A grandson of a wealthy, self-made real estate developer and philanthropist, Mangione is a cousin of a current Maryland state legislator.
Valedictorian at his elite Baltimore prep school, he went on to earn undergraduate and graduate degrees in computer science in 2020 from the University of Pennsylvania, a spokesperson said.
“Our family is shocked and devastated by Luigi’s arrest,” Mangione’s family said in a statement posted on social media late Monday by his cousin, Maryland Del. Nino Mangione. “We offer our prayers to the family of Brian Thompson and we ask people to pray for all involved.”
From January to June 2022, Luigi Mangione lived at Surfbreak, a “co-living” space at the edge of touristy Waikiki in Honolulu.
Like other residents of the shared penthouse catering to remote workers, Mangione underwent a background check, said Josiah Ryan, a spokesperson for owner and founder R.J. Martin.
“Luigi was just widely considered to be a great guy. There were no complaints,” Ryan said. “There was no sign that might point to these alleged crimes they’re saying he committed.”
At Surfbreak, Martin learned Mangione had severe back pain from childhood that interfered with many aspects of his life, from surfing to romance, Ryan said.
Mangione left Surfbreak to get surgery on the mainland, Ryan said, then later returned to Honolulu and rented an apartment.
Martin stopped hearing from Mangione six months to a year ago.
Adapted from reporting by the Associated Press
