Police say a severe back injury may have motivated a man to kill the health insurance firm UnitedHealthcare CEO in New York City. Luigi Mangione, 26, is accused of shooting UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson last week. Mangione was arrested in Pennsylvania on Monday after a nationwide search.
NYPD chief of detectives Joseph Kenny confirmed to NBC New York that the suspect experienced a significant medical incident in July 2023. “He posted X-rays of screws being inserted into his spine. So the injury that he suffered was, was a life-changing, life-altering injury, and that’s what may have put him on this path,” Kenny said.
Police say they haven’t found any evidence that Mangione was a UnitedHealthcare customer. They suggest he might have targeted the company because it is the largest health insurer in the US. Fingerprints and shell casings link Mangione to the crime scene, according to police. Investigators have not yet accessed Mangione’s phone or spoken to his family.
At the time of his arrest, Mangione had a handwritten note criticizing the US healthcare system and a notebook with apparent plans for the murder. One entry reportedly saidd, “What do you do? You wack the CEO at the annual parasitic bean-counter convention. It’s targeted, precise, and doesn’t risk innocents.”
Currently detained in Pennsylvania, Mangione is contesting extradition to New York. Manhattan prosecutors have begun grand jury proceedings, which could strengthen their extradition case, ABC News reported.