Person of interest detained in killing of United Healthcare executive
A suspect has been apprehended in the murder of Brian Thompson:
The man — who sources said is being eyed for the coldblooded, targeted execution in front of a Manhattan hotel last week — allegedly had a manifesto on him when he was taken into custody by cops in Altoona, Pa.
He also had a gun, silencer, four fake IDs and other items “consistent” with what authorities were looking for in the case, sources said.
If all of that is true – and early reports are sometimes erroneous – he certainly sounds highly suspicious. Four fake IDs is a lot of fake IDs. And as far as I know, most people who carry guns don’t also ordinarily carry silencers for them. If this really is the guy, I’m surprised he hadn’t ditched the gun somewhere along the way, unless he was planning further murders to great internet acclaim from the left.
The manifesto is reported to have been “critical of the health insurance industry.” Another thought occurs to me – perhaps the guy was contemplating suicide, and leaving the manifesto as his message to the world?
And now I see that the suspect has been ID’d as Luigi Mangione: he is 26 years old, from Maryland, and “is an anti-capitalist Ivy League grad who liked online quotes from ‘Unabomber’ Ted Kaczynski — and apparently hated the medical community because of how it treated his sick relative, law-enforcement sources told The Post on Monday.”
That’s a lot to digest. Come to think of it, admiration for the Unabomber would make sense for this killer’s profile, as would a generally leftist orientation:
Mangione was valedictorian of his 2016 high school graduating class at the Gilman School in Baltimore, where he played soccer, according to online sites. High school tuition at the all-boys school is nearly $40,000 a year.
He said at the time of graduation that he planned to seek a degree in artificial intelligence, focused on the areas of computer science and cognitive science at the University of Pennsylvania, according to an interview with the Baltimore Fishbowl.
He says in online posts that he graduated from the prestigious school with a master’s of science in engineering and a bachelor’s degree in the same field.
His LinkedIn suggests he is a data engineer at a car company based in California, although he lists his current home as Honolulu in Hawaii.
He’s also very into gaming. Interesting, in the sense that it occurred to me yesterday, on thinking about some of his online supporters, that they sounded as though they regarded Thompson’s murder as a move in a game, in which the shooter was the animated hero against the forces of evil.
The police were alerted to Mangione’s presence by a MacDonald’s customer recognizing his resemblance to a photo released from a surveillance video.
Sounds as if, from his high school tuition to his higher ed, he had reason to think himself above the rest of us, which of course would include the moral side of things.
Didn’t some young guy get away with a vile crime due to having “affluenze” or some such? Had so much he couldn’t grasp that laws applied to him, too.
There’s no excuse for cold-blooded murder. However, this is even worse than it would have been had the shooter been upset about a specific United Healthcare coverage denial. This sounds like a generalized Antifa-type anti-capitalist radical.
Bet that wiped the smirk off that dirtbag’s face.
Seeing photos of the lone killer masked up and hooded, I immediately thought of the Unabomber, a Harvard grad majoring in math.
I’d like to think that a bright person oriented to science or math would be resistant to political terrorism, but that is not the case.
The apocalyptic Aum Shinrikyo cult which launched sarin gas attacks on the Todyo subway system had strong scientific backgrounds.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tokyo_subway_sarin_attack#Main_perpetrators
Hard to believe that his family did not recognize him. He has very distinct features.
I think the authorities knew who he was early on.
Hard to believe that his family did not recognize him. He has very distinct features.
Whoosher:
It was the Unabomber’s brother, David Kaczynski, who gets the ultimate credit for Ted Kaczynski’s arrest.
David Kaczynski made the connections between his brother and the Unabomber Manifesto, hired a private investigator to check into his brother. then a lawyer to organize the evidence for the FBI to act upon.
One might wonder about Mangione’s family.
When I heard Mangione had been arrested, I put on that Chuck Mangione tune that everybody has heard a thousand times, but that nobody knows the name of. Also, other music from 40 years ago, including “The Love Theme from St. Elmo’s Fire.” Well done, David+Foster.
And all the people calling Daniel Penny a racist murderer will proclaim this guy a hero.
Feels so good 1978 (referred in Dr strange, of all places) the evidence looks circumstantial to me, in terms of motive
Lots of diagnostic speculation, but by age, high IQ and behaviors he strikes me as schizophrenic with paranoid features, a terrible curse of an incurable disease.
I feel sorry for him and his family, and I think others should do so also.
He’s an Ivy Leaguer who believes in the global warming scam.
And people are posting fake and false reviews on the McDonald’s in Altoona. That worker will get the money reward. Hero!
@Cicero
I had that same thought and will not be surprise if it is the case. If it is not his defense may claim it anyway.
He also may just be a poor little rich socialist doing this as a show of his false virtue. If that is the case it only makes it seem worse that this was not a legitimately crazy person or even a person who’s loved one was somehow, at least in their own mind if not in truth, left to die by the heartless insurance company. Those things would be senseless enough but there would be real emotions and brokenness behind it.
Another bright young mind ruined and poisoned by the Left.
It seems to me that he really fits the profile of Antifa
SHIREHOME:
Agreed.
Anyone who would deliberately take a human life is insane (aside from war, police work or self defense).
Ivy League perp flees assassination scene, crossing several states WITH SAME gun, WITH SAME silencer, WITH multiple IDs…
Yep, a real genius.
We all still remember we’re dealing with the same legacy media that tries to mislead us about pretty much everything, right? Maybe give a few days for more facts to emerge before internalizing a narrative that may not even be true? Do the names Steven Hatfill or Richard Jewell still mean anything to anyone? Remember all those officers “killed” on J6?
I guess this clown doesn’t understand that the unibomber probably would have been identified within weeks if not days had cameras been everywhere like they are now. Same with that idiot in Idaho.
Had the same thoughts as Cicero. Psychosis,
Also, he looks much too clean cut for Antifa. His hair is a natural color, for one thing…
Altoona? Wonder why he picked it as a waypoint. Doubt it was his final destination, but anything is possible. They say he took the bus there, which seems most realistic, although AMTRAK has a stop along the way to Pittsburgh and points west. Perhaps he was planning to take another page from Kazcynski’s book and find a log cabin somewhere in the Jim Bridger Wilderness Area. Parenthetically, after the railroad died, our Congressman, Bud “Bringin’ Home the Bacon” Shuster–head of Transportation Committee–got funding for major highway construction to and through Altoona. He promised great economic times, which failed to materialize, but it sure did make it easy for bums from Philadelphia and New York to get here along with their crime and drugs. Talk about unintended consequences. And finally, apropos the comment that anyone who murders is “insane,” NO, NO, a THOUSAND TIMES NO! Murderers are by-and-large simply evil. One of the problems with our “therapeutic society” is the belief that someone who does something wrong/bad/evil is “insane” and needs therapy instead of punishment. It is the act that merits punishment; the mental/emotional state of the actor is irrelevant except in cases fitting within the original M’Naughton Rule where there is a complete break with reality, such as when a man takes an axe to another man believing his victim to be a tree. In such case, although capital punishment is eliminated, permanent incarceration and separation from society is still required, although in an insane asylum rather than penal institution. Either way, the protection of society demands it.
According to news reports up this morning (Fox, Daily Mail), Mangione suffered a surfing accident in Hawaii, and “went nuts” from the pain. He had surgery, blamed United Healthcare because his back wasn’t perfect afterwards, started experimenting with psychedelics and magic mushrooms. Was out of touch with family. The psychosis speculation is starting to sound plausible.
I agree with Kate above (7:17 am). Sometimes the explanation for seemingly inexplicable actions turns out to be pharmaceuticals, prescribed or otherwise. Was he on opioids, anti-depressants, other pain or psychotropic meds? Ketamine? Marijuana? I think this may be important. It will certainly be important to his defense attorneys.
Lots of diagnostic speculation, but by age, high IQ and behaviors he strikes me as schizophrenic with paranoid features, a terrible curse of an incurable disease.
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I suspect Mr. Aubrey’s interpretation is closer to reality.
When I heard Mangione had been arrested, I put on that Chuck Mangione tune that everybody has heard a thousand times, but that nobody knows the name of.
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“Feels so Good”. It’s a fine piece. It shares a problem with much of Burt Bacharach’s oeuvre. It’s handsome qualities fade to the listener as one’s heard it one too many times. It’s saved from that fate to a degree by being long enough that you do not recall much of it.
Seeing photos of the lone killer masked up and hooded, I immediately thought of the Unabomber, a Harvard grad majoring in math.
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Dr. Kaczynski was a miserably lonely man. Doesn’t match.
Niketas “… legacy media that tries to mislead us about pretty much everything, …
… Do names Steven Hatfill or Richard Jewell still mean anything to anyone? Remember all those officers “killed” on J6?”
Such good points.
I know people who still cling to the J6 “Trump’s insurrection … Killed many officers” lies.
I’m the enemy for voting Trump!
…
If this “suspected” killer isn’t ill with some diagnosable mental disease, I’m curious what his family life was like, growing up.
Parental neglect is common and powerful, IMO.
I’m not excusing him, but wondering about the contributing factors, as are you all.
It seems a stretch, I guess one suspected a more direct cause, but then again, back pain,…kill a ceo, how does that track, his twitter page seemed more heterodox, than his reddit, that’s some serious crazy town over there, as with blue sky now, where say patterico has shown deep insanity of late, but he’s not the only one,
on the other side, was breivik and a supposed sympathizer that emerged recently, on this platform, I guess it’s like the mythical supersoldier serum, it accentuates one’s characteristics, of course regime media, is trying to hide the vein of insanity as pertains to their venn diagram, see New York Magazine which emerged from the debris of a great Paper the Herald Tribune, it was the publication that gave voice to
the great Tom Wolfe, but it has purged anyone of sane measure from it’s pages,
even Andrew Sullivan was too far a bridge for them,
he absorbed all the things the prestege press have told him
were pressing threats and well some people cannot process info well,
(as a tech guy that seems ironic,)
Something feels wonky.
1. How “close” is the facial recognition result?
2. How many people under 30 would be wearing the same outfit including
backpack?
3. Can they prove this gun is THE weapon? I think I remember hearing that
“printed”guns cannot be identified–not by number or identifying marks.
4. How difficult would it be to set up a “patsy”? Someone to leave a deliberate
trail to help the true offender to escape?
For several years now we have been watching the ethics, or lack thereof, of the NY law enforcement community. I can’t imagine their ego being willing to let this search drag on for awhile.
Maybe I just can’t trust the system–any system–any more!
I think the dots match enough to my satisfaction, the logic of his actions don’t make any sense,
Steve (retired/recovering lawyer) wrote
My comment was simplistic, so I don’t really disagree with you. What I was driving at was “moral evil.” Insanity and evil are not mutually exclusive, but rather, closely linked. I certainly didn’t mean that the accused killer wasn’t evil as well as insane (despite his engineering degrees).
What I was driving at was “moral evil.”
Sorry, I meant “moral insanity.”
Kate (at 7:17 am) has it about right in pointing out the meds for back pain as cause of his probable psychosis. A close friend has been dealing with severe back pain for several years and is now open to about anything, even illegal drugs. She drags herself to physical therapy daily, which in itself creates almost as much pain as her spinal problems. But she’s old and realizes that s… happens and deals with it with brownies and tasty cookies. Ah hem… That this young man had surgery leaving him without the ability to even have sex and then isolated himself in Japan for 6 months probably seeking alternative treatment including those “special” mushrooms, speaks to his desperation. It’s still no excuse however. Our host has knowledge in this area as I recall.
his probable psychosis
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That this young man had surgery leaving him without the ability to even have sex and then isolated himself in Japan for 6 months probably seeking alternative treatment including those “special” mushrooms
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Your imagination is quite real to you.
Reply to Dr. Art Deco.
After a surfing accident in Hawaii, according to The Sun rag in England:
“Those looking into the 26-year-old murder suspect have now claimed this serious back injury led to a worrying spiral in the last 12 months. Mangione was reportedly suffering from spondylolisthesis – an issue with the vertebra – and was given four screws placed deep into his spine to help with the pain. Former classmates of Mangione have appeared to tell reporters that the surgery went wrong and that this could have driven the Maryland man to the brink.”
“The botched surgery is currently one of the leading theories. Mangione is said to have moved to Japan shortly after the surfing accident and lived an almost silent life in seclusion away from family and friends. One source, quoting the former classmates, said they felt the wealthy former valedictorian turned “absolutely crazy” after the operation. They believe that following the ordeal, “everything changed” in his life, leading to him becoming a murder suspect.The theory is further supported by looking at Mangione’s GoodReads history which shows multiple books on dealing with back pain.”
“Founder of Surfbreak in Honolulu, RJ Martin, has spoken out since Mangione was named and remembered some conversations he had with the suspect.
He said, according to the New York Times: “His spine was kind of misaligned. He said his lower vertebrae were almost like a half-inch off, and I think it pinched a nerve. Sometimes he’d be doing well and other times not.”
“Martin, who also shared a room with the suspected masked murderer, says he had even commented on how his back stopped him from having sex. “He knew that dating and being physically intimate with his back condition wasn’t possible,” he said.”
As to my imagination being real to me, assuming Dr. Deco is referring to the speculation about psychedelics, that came from elsewhere on the internet. Real? Who knows. I’m just glad that this murdering psycho is a left wing nut rather than one of ours, but qualified with the hope that his evil action doesn’t inspire others.
Anne, printed guns are like others in they leave marks on the spent casings. Archaeologists at the Little Bighorn battlefield tracked individual weapons around the field both army and Indian weapons. One section of the field is called Henryville because of all the recovered Henry shell casings.
The Other Chuck:
As a person who suffered from serious chronic pain for over a decade, and who has much milder chronic pain now. I can say that chronic pain patients have a great deal of frustration and suffering in their lives but it is highly highly unusual to become a murderer because of it. It does indeed seem clear that something drove Mangione off the deep end (assuming of course that he’s the murderer).
Please see my latest post and especially the part on Raskolnikov.
As to my imagination being real to me, assuming Dr. Deco is referring to the speculation about psychedelics, that came from elsewhere on the internet. Real? Who knows. I’m just glad that this murdering psycho is a left wing nut rather than one of ours, but qualified with the hope that his evil action doesn’t inspire others.
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I think it’s exceedingly imprudent to make judgments on the basis of protean reports in the media, especially since the facial source is someone characterizing medical records he almost certainly hasn’t seen.
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Chases Eagles on December 10, 2024 at 3:35 pm
“… printed guns are like others in they leave marks on the spent casings.”
From a quick search it appears printing metals can achive 50 to 200 micron resolution (or .05 to .2 mm) [or 2 to 7 thousandths of an inch].
Is that good enough to achive respectable rifling of the weapon’s barrel? Or the ID of the barrel? Did the shooter have to get as close as he did to ensure a good hit because of mediocre rifling?
and if the comments about his back surgery and pain are valid, interesting that he shot the CEO in the back. Was it the same relative location as for his pins?