Luigi Mangione social media tweets are surprisingly free of criticism for the US health insurance business. Instead, he discusses his trips, hobbies, and battles with persistent back pain. According to police, he had no prior connection to UnitedHealthcare.
The New York Police Department confirmed that Luigi Mangione, the 26-year-old technician suspected of fatally shooting UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson on a Manhattan sidewalk, had no prior relationship to the health insurance behemoth.
Chief of Detectives Joseph Kenny stated that Mangione, who was caught earlier this week after a five-day manhunt, may have targeted Thompson due to UnitedHealthcare’s size and influence.
Manione’s Struggles With Back Pain
Mangione, a former high school valedictorian and scion of a rich Baltimore family, graduated from an Ivy League university and maintained an active social media presence. For years, his posts included happy travel images, gym exercises, and thoughts on personal health issues, namely a persistent spine disease called as spondylolisthesis.
In a July 2023 post on the internet site Reddit, he expressed remorse for delaying surgery after injuring his back while surfing in Hawaii: “I got caught in this loop for a year, all the while putting my life on hold in my 20s and damaging my nerves while I waffled on the decision.” I undergo surgery in two weeks and I’m wondering why I was so terrified about it.
Following his spinal surgery, Mangione became an advocate for the treatment, sharing his story on Reddit and offering advise to others.
“Surgery was painful for the first couple days, but I was shocked that by day 7 I was on literally zero pain meds,” he wrote in August of that year.
According to the Associated Press (AP), Mangione’s posts at the time were mostly absent of accusations of corporate greed in the health insurance sector, a theme that resurfaced later in the scribbled “manifesto” discovered at his arrest.
Asia Trip, Then Sudden Disapperance
Mangione stopped using social media and lost connection with friends and family early this year after embarking on a solo backpacking tour through Asia, visiting countries such as Japan and Thailand.
“I want some time to zen out,” he stated in an April audio message to a buddy while hiking in Japan’s Nara region, according to the New York Post.
His social media profiles had become dormant by midsummer, and his mother reported him missing on November 18, just two weeks before Thompson’s murder on December 4.
Little is known about Mangione’s mental state in recent months, but law enforcement sources believe he has been distancing from intimate contacts.
What Next For Mangione?
The multi-state manhunt for Mangione concluded on Monday, when he was apprehended at a McDonald’s in Altoona, Pennsylvania, nearly 200 miles from the shooting location. Police relied largely on surveillance video and citizen suggestions to find him.
Mangione is now facing murder charges in New York, as well as charges in Pennsylvania for possessing a 3D-printed gun and a fraudulent ID. His lawyer denies his role in Thompson’s death and says Mangione intends to plead not guilty to all counts.
Mangione was denied bail during his court appearance in Pennsylvania on Tuesday and is still in detention.
The death of Thompson, a key person in the health insurance industry, has sparked uproar on the internet, with many Americans condemning corporate tactics in the healthcare sector. Some social media users have even portrayed Mangione as a folk hero, expressing popular outrage at the industry’s perceived shortcomings.