Doubts have been cast over Luigi Mangione’s potential motives in connection to the murder of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson.
The NYPD’s Chief of Detectives Joseph Kenny revealed that there is “no indication” that the shooting suspect, who is believed to have undergone back surgery last year, was ever a client of UnitedHealthcare.
The findings don’t appear to indicate that Mangione had a grudge against Thompson, who was gunned down in Midtown Manhattan on December 4, but targeted the company for its size and because he had prior knowledge of a conference taking place, Kenny told NBC New York.
“We have no indication that he ever was a client of UnitedHealthcare, but he does make mention that it is the fifth largest corporation in America, which would make it the largest healthcare organization in America,” he said.
It comes as New York prosecutors began presenting evidence to a grand jury as they work toward what Governor Kathy Hochul predicts will be an “ironclad” indictment against the suspect, ABC News reported.
A grand jury indictment could bolster the case for extradition from Pennsylvania to New York, where he faces a second-degree murder charge.
UnitedHealthcare didn’t insure Luigi Mangione
UnitedHealth Group, the parent company to UntiedHealthcare, said that Luigi Mangione was not a client of the health insurance company.
There is no record that the 26-year-old shooting suspect was ever insured by the company, UnitedHealth Group told NBC News.
Police also confirmed that there is “no indication” that Mangione was registered with UnitedHealthcare, whose CEO was murdered on December 4 in Midtown Manhattan.
“We have no indication that he was ever a client of United Healthcare, but he does make mention that it is the fifth-largest corporation in America, which would make it the largest health care organization in America,” Chief of Detectives Joseph Kenny told NBC New York.
Luigi Mangione’s motive in doubt
Luigi Mangione’s potential motives in connection to the murder of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson remain unclear, police say.
There is “no indication” that the shooting suspect, who is believed to have undergone back surgery last year, was ever a client of UnitedHealthcare, according to the NYPD’s Chief of Detectives Joseph Kenny.
He said that the findings don’t appear to indicate that Mangione had a grudge against Thompson, who was gunned down in Midtown Manhattan on December 4, but targeted the company for its size and because he had prior knowledge of a conference taking place.
“We have no indication that he ever was a client of UnitedHealthcare, but he does make mention that it is the fifth largest corporation in America, which would make it the largest healthcare organization in America,” he told NBC New York.
California police had identified Mangione four days before arrest
San Francisco police identified Luigi Mangione and alerted the FBI four days prior to his arrest, according to a report.
An officer in the department’s Special Victims Unit is said to have tipped off the bureau after recognizing the UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson’s shooting suspect on from images circulated by the NYPD last week, sources told the San Francisco Chronicle.
Mangione’s face was known to police in San Francisco after his mother, Kathleen Mangione, had reported him missing on November 18, the sources said.
Authorities initially said that the 26-year-old suspect wasn’t on their radar upon his arrest at an Altoona, Pennsylvania, McDonald’s on Monday.
Mangione not under suicide watch
The suspect in the shooting is being held in his own cell under maximum security at Huntingdon Correctional Facility in Pennsylvania.
Luigi Mangione is not under suicide watch or in solitary confinement, according to CBS News. However, he does not get to interact with other inmates.
Mangione has not been violent while in jail, according to officials.
He is being held in a Pennsylvania jail pending his extradition to New York to face murder charges in connection to the killing of United Healthcare CEO Brian Thompson.
No tips from Mangione’s family, cops say
NYPD officials said Luigi Mangione’s family did not send in any tips. That comes as their relative’s pictures were splashed all over news channels in the hours after the shooting.
Police said they received more than 200 tips as the manhunt for Mangione unfolded, but none came from family with the same name, according to USA Today.
It wwasn’tuntil the suspect was spotted in Pennsylvania that police swooped in to make an arrest in the case, nearly a week after the killing.
NY bail bondsman discusses Luigi Mangione arrest
Michael Moore responds to Luigi Mangione’s cryptic message
The acclaimed American documentary filmmaker Michael Moore has responded to a cryptic message left by Luigi Mangione, the alleged assassin of UnitedHealthcare’s CEO.
Mangione faces a second-degree murder charge for the fatal shooting of Brian Thompson, 50, outside a Manhattan hotel on 4 December.
At the crime scene, Mangione reportedly left behind bullet casings engraved with the words “deny,” “depose,” and “defend.” The inscriptions appear to reference the 2010 book Delay, Deny, Defend: Why Insurance Companies Don’t Pay Claims and What You Can Do About It, which has surged in popularity on Amazon’s insurance law bestseller list since the incident.
When arrested in Pennsylvania on Monday, Mangione was found in possession of a 262-page manifesto outlining his intentions and referencing notorious figures such as Unabomber Ted Kaczynski.
In the document, Mangione also briefly mentioned Michael Moore and former New York Times reporter Elisabeth Rosenthal, citing them as individuals who have “illuminated the corruption and greed” of the healthcare industry.
Here’s the full story.
Polymarket starts taking bets on Luigi Mangione’s future
Betting platform Polymarket started taking bets on Luigi Mangione’s future after the 26-year-old was charged with the murder of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson.
The bets started appearing on the website on Monday shortly after Mangione was arrested in a McDonald’s in Altoona, Pennsylvania, on gun charges, according to Forbes.
The betting platform surged in popularity during the 2024 presidential election, when gamblers spent more than $3.3 billion guessing the results.
So far, users have wagered thousands of dollars worth of cryptocurrencies speculating over Mangione’s alleged motive and outcome of the case.
A bet with one of the highest trading volumes, $125,000, is on whether Mangione was “motivated by denied [health insurance] claims.” Polymarket’s betting odds give it a 24 percent chance of being true.
Rhian Lubin has the full story.
Timeline of the manhunt
December 4: The suspect set off from an Upper West Side hostel before dawn. He was seen on surveillance video walking back and forth at 54th Street and Sixth Avenue, near the Hilton Hotel where the UnitedHealthcare Group was holding its conference. After opening fire, the suspect fled by bike through Central Park before getting into a cab and was later spotted at a bus station. A manhunt ensued.
December 5: Investigators revealed a cryptic message carved onto the shell casings: “delay,” “deny” and “depose.” NYPD also released images of the suspect.
December 6: Police announce they believe the suspect has left New York City, expanding the desperate search. A backpack, thought to belong to the suspect, was found in Central Park and sent in for forensic testing. The now-viral “flirtatious” photo of the suspect speaking to a hostel worker was released.
December 7: NYPD releases another photo of the suspect, this time in the back of a taxi. The FBI also joined the hunt for the suspect, offering a $50,000 reward for information.
December 8: Although no leads on the suspect’s whereabouts were made public, investigators revealed the contents of the backpack included Monopoly money and a Tommy Hilfiger jacket.
December 9: A private service for Brian Thompson was held. Also that day, a McDonald’s employee in Altoona, Pennsylvania tipped recognized Mangione from the photos circulated by police. He was arrested in Pennsylvania on gun charges and hours later faced a murder charge in New York.
Health care companies increase security after ‘wanted’ posters for health care executives crop up
“Wanted” posters with the names and faces of health care executives have been popping up on the streets of New York. Hit lists with images of bullets are circulating online with warnings that industry leaders should be afraid.
The apparent targeted killing of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson and the menacing threats that followed have sent a shudder through corporate America and the health care industry in particular, leading to increased security for executives and some workers.
In the week since the brazen shooting, health insurers have removed information about their top executives from company websites, canceled in-person meetings with shareholders and advised all employees to work from home temporarily.
An internal New York Police Department bulletin warned this week that the online vitriol that followed the shooting could signal an immediate “elevated threat.”
Police fear that the Dec. 4 shooting could “inspire a variety of extremists and grievance-driven malicious actors to violence,” according to the bulletin, which was obtained by The Associated Press.
Source: independent.co.uk