Suspect in Fatal Shooting of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson 'Started to Shake' When Asked If He'd Been to New York Recently, Police Say


Suspect in Fatal Shooting of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson 'Started to Shake' When Asked If He'd Been to New York Recently, Police Say

Daniel Levine is a Staff Editor at PEOPLE. He joined PEOPLE in 2022. His work previously appeared at PopCulture.com, Heavy, and TheCelebrityCafe.com.

The man suspected of shooting UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson was arraigned on Monday, Dec. 9 in Hollidaysburg, Penn.

Luigi Mangione is charged with five counts per court papers. one felony count of forgery, one felony count of carrying a firearm without a license, one misdemeanor count of tampering with records or identification, one misdemeanor count of possessing instruments of a crime and one misdemeanor count of false identification to law enforcement authorities.

During the arraignment, the judge read the entire criminal complaint out loud, per CNN. He was ordered held without bail and did not enter a plea. He is set to appear in court next on Dec. 23 in Pennsylvania.

Mangione, 26, whose last known address was in Honolulu, was identified as a person of interest in Thompson's shooting in midtown Manhattan last week, NYPD Commissioner Jessica Tisch said at a press conference earlier on Dec. 9.

Mangione was arrested on Dec. 9 in a McDonald's in Altoona, Pa., on firearms charges after an employee recognized him from photos the NYPD had circulated nationwide. The employee called local police, Tisch said at the press conference.

According to the criminal complaint, Mangione allegedly gave a responding officer a New Jersey driver's license with a false name. While the officer "an the information through the dispatch center," another officer asked Mangione if he had been to New York recently. Mangione allegedly "became quiet and started to shake," the complaint reads.

Officers couldn't find any information from the New Jersey license Mangione allegedly provided. They told him he was under "official police investigation" and would be arrested if he lied about who he was. Mangione then allegedly told police he was Luigi Mangione with a birth date of May 6, 1998, according to the papers. When officers asked him why he lied, Mangione allegedly said, "I clearly shouldn't have."

"Responding officers questioned the suspect who was acting suspiciously and was carrying multiple fraudulent IDs as well as a U.S. passport," Tisch said.

He was also carrying a firearm and suppressor, "consistent with the weapon used in the murder," and a manifesto against health care companies, Tisch alleged.

Police believe Mangione used a so-called "ghost gun" that he may have made from a 3D printer, NYPD Chief of Detectives Joseph Kenny said at the press conference.

Thompson, 50, a father of two from Minnesota, was fatally shot outside the New York Midtown Hilton hotel on Dec. 4 in what police called a "brazen, targeted attack," The shooter fled the scene on an electric Citibike he rode into Central Park.

When he was caught on videotape exiting Central Park, he was still riding the bike, but was no longer carrying the backpack.

NYPD detectives scoured the park and found the backpack on Saturday, Dec. 7, containing a Tommy Hilfiger jacket and Monopoly money, NBC News, ABC News and The New York Post reported on Saturday.

The manifesto -- the handwritten document officers allegedly found on Mangione when he was apprehended -- "speaks to both his motivation and mindset," Tisch said.

Tisch did not reveal exactly what the manifesto contains.

Kenny hinted at what it could contain when he said it seems that Mangione "has some ill will towards corporate America." A source told PEOPLE said it assailed the health care industry.

Want to keep up with the latest crime coverage? Sign up for PEOPLE's free True Crime newsletter for breaking crime news, ongoing trial coverage and details of intriguing unsolved cases.

Authorities also discovered engravings on bullet casings found at the scene with the words "deny," "defend," and "depose.

This is similar to the phrase "delay, deny, defend" used to describe the industry's strategy of rejecting claims, which was also the title of a 2010 book by Rutgers University professor Jay Feinman.

Mangione grew up in Towson, Md. PEOPLE confirms he was the high school valedictorian at the Gilman School, a prestigious boys prep school in Baltimore. PEOPLE confirms he has both a bachelor's and master's degree from the University of Pennsylvania.

In 2016, Mangione founded Penn's Game Research and Development Environment, a club also known as UPGRADE," The Daily Pennsylvanian reports.

Previous articleNext article

POPULAR CATEGORY

corporate

10189

tech

11464

entertainment

12517

research

5669

misc

13262

wellness

10079

athletics

13241