The Shooting
On Dec. 4, 2024, United Health Care CEO Brian Thompson was fatally shot outside of Manhattan Hotel in Manhattan, NY. Thompson was on his way to a business meeting at the hotel scheduled to begin at 8 A.M.. He was there over an hour early and was shot at around 6:45 A.M..
The gunman, who at this point had not been identified, shot Thompson multiple times in the back, and once in the calf region. The New York Police Department said he showed proficient use of a firearm. Mangione then escaped through a nearby alleyway before jumping on a bike and riding through Central Park. Shell casings were found at the scene with the words “deny”, “defend”, and “depose” engraved in them.
The Investigation and Arrest
The shooter was seen in recovered surveillance footage from a nearby business loitering outside of the hotel, moments prior to the shooting. He was also seen on cameras inside of a Starbucks hours before the shooting as well. In these clips, you can only see a portion of his face.
The police then recovered a cell phone along the escape route as well as a backpack that was presumed to be the shooter’s with money from the board game, “Monopoly”. The police quickly identified 26-year-old Luigi Mangione as a person-of-interest, then the prime suspect in their case, and a $10,000 reward was posted for his arrest.
Mangione ended up inside a McDonalds in Altoona, Pennsylvania, where an employee by the name of Nancy Parker called 911 and turned Mangione into the authorities. Parker, however, did not receive the reward because she called 911 instead of the tip line. The police arrived at the McDonalds and asked him to remove his mask and for his I.D. Mangione removed his mask and handed them a fake I.D. The police then asked him if he had been in New York recently when witnesses say he began shaking with anxiety. He then told the police he should’ve given them his real I.D. and identified himself as Luigi Mangione. He was then detained with a 3-D printed gun that matched the gun used to kill Thompson, several fake I.D’s, $8,000 in cash and $200 in foreign currency, as well as a written manifesto where he said the following:
“I do apologize for any strife or trauma but it had to be done,” Mangione wrote. “These parasites simply had it coming.”
Mangione was arrested on Dec. 9, just five days after the shooting, and has been in SCI-Huntingdon in Pennsylvania, awaiting extradition. On Dec. 11, Mangione was brought to a Pennsylvania courthouse for his first hearing in the trial. Upon arrival, he turned to the media outside the courthouse and yelled a cryptic message.
“It’s completely out of touch,” Mangione yelled, “and an insult to the intelligence of the American people and its lived experience.”
The Manhattan District Attorney charged him with the murder of Thompson and wants him back in New York so that he can prosecute him. Mangione’s lawyer, Tom Dickey, however, told Judge David Consiglio, the judge in Pennsylvania, “He is not waiving extradition. He is contesting it.”
Blair County’s DA is fighting for Mangione to be held without bail, claiming he is a dangerous person who is looking to flee the country, given the money found on his person when detained. His lawyer wants bail to be posted for Mangioned temporary release. Dickey also has limited time to build a case for Mangione’s refusal to be extradited to Rikers Island in New York, where incarceration conditions are significantly worse than those at SCI-Huntingdon.
The Mangione Family
Mangione was born and raised in Baltimore County, Maryland, which is one of the most expensive places to live or own real estate in Maryland, as well as the entire United States. He attended Gilman School, a prestigious all-boys private high school, and graduated as valedictorian. From there, he attended the University of Pennsylvania, an Ivy League school, with a Masters and a Bachelors in computer science and a Minor in mathematics.
Luigi Mangione came from a successful background and an affluent family who made their fortune in the healthcare industry. His grandparents, Nicholas and Mary Mangione, founded Lorien Health Services in 1977. It is a senior living and rehabilitation center and since 1977, it has grown to have at least nine long-term care and rehab facilities across Maryland. However, they didn’t stop there. As they grew as a healthcare service, they also invested in buying the Turf Valley Golf Resort in Maryland, where they hosted numerous weddings, parties, and dinners with healthcare and pharmaceutical representatives.
Nicholas and Mary Mangione had 10 children, and in a set of interrogatives from one of their lawsuits, they detail the ownership structure of the different shell corporations, which states that all 10 adult offspring of the founders own a 10% stake in the company. In that same set of interrogatives, they break down the ownership of the resort and which corporations do what at which facilities. There was an attached letter containing an offer to buy a new facility that was signed by one Louis Mangione, one of the 10 children and likely Luigi’s father (according to address records). Louis was the president of the company, running the development for all of the rehab facilities and the resort.
Both Louis and Luigi Mangione’s addresses were found to be the same house in Providence, Maryland, which is one of, if not the most expensive place to live in and around Baltimore County. It was also found through the same records that Luigi volunteered at the rehab facilities often, though he never officially worked with Lorien Health Services.
Lorien Health Services had several shell corporations, a majority of which had numerous malpractice lawsuits against them. Government ranking from the Medicare assessment system showed that they were abusive and neglectful in their care facilities. One of the facilities’ most recent “health rating” was 2 out of 5 stars. It also received 2 demerits just on routine health inspection investigations this year alone. The national average is 9.6. They are also squeezing 112.7 patients into a facility the size that nation averages at 83. The percentage of long-stay low-risk residents who lose control of their bowels or bladder is 83.2%, while the national average is 48.6%. This means that almost 85% of their low-risk patients are not taken to the facilities in time and forced to go on themselves or in their beds.
Mangione also suffered from a severe health condition himself. He had a condition called spondylolisthesis. Spondylolisthesis occurs when a fracture in the spine causes a vertebrae to split out of alignment and causes extreme pain and discomfort. It adds insult to injury that Mangione was 26-years-old, which is the age at which citizens get kicked off of their parent’s medical insurance in the United States.
The Monopoly Theory
As social media is ever present in modern society, it’s no surprise that the case has taken the internet by storm. From the moment Thompson was killed, the United Health Care case and Luigi Mangione’s names have been in the headlines. Online, American users have started to investigate the case on their own. These personal investigations have led to several theories, including a Monopoly theory.
As stated previously, police found notes of money from the board game Monopoly in the gunman’s backpack in Central Park. Monopoly is a game where you get rich by making everybody else poor. Sounds a little familiar. At the beginning of the game, players are given $1,500 to start. It is not yet known how much money was found in the backpack, however, fans speculate that it was $1,500, signaling the beginning of “the game”.
Mangione was arrested at a McDonalds in Altoona, Pennsylvania. Altoona, PA is home to the Pennsylvania Railroad, The Pennsylvania Railroad is a stop on the Monopoly game board and one of the cards up for purchase. McDonalds also had a 40-year campaign with Monopoly where you could win tickets and tokens. The game was recently halted when a man rigged the game to help his friends and family win. Coincidence? “Fans” think not.
The fact that Mangione was arrested at all sparked thoughts about the board game. In the game, you can go to jail when you land on the square after passing “go”. Online investigators believe Mangione let the employee who called the police pass go and collect $200 while he landed in jail. The question lies: does he have a “get-out-jail-free” card?
The 286 Theory
Throughout the progress of this case, the numbers 2, 8, and 6 have appeared in several corners. Luigi was an avid user of X, formerly known as Twitter, and he had exactly 286 posts. His account banner on the app had a picture of a Pokemon whose Polkadex number is #0286. People have also pointed out the Bible verse Proverbs 28:6 which reads, “Better is a poor man who walks in his integrity than a rich man who is crooked in his ways.”
There is no current proof that Mangione is a practicing Christian, however, if the American populace is his audience, Christianity is one of the most commonly found religions in the country. It’s the best way to appeal to the most people. That idea is also consistent with his activity on X, where he posted about utilitarianism and virtue ethics. He seemed to lean more towards utilitarian ethics which is doing the most good for the most people, no matter what actions you have to take to get there.
U.S. Criminal Code 286 is a code that deals with charging individuals, organizations, or companies that purposefully and intentionally defraud the government. Code 286 is also a denial code that is used in health insurance to deny claims.
2, 8, and 6 are also three doubles. In Monopoly, to get out of jail, you have to either roll three doubles or wait for someone else to take their turn.
Mangione’s Youtube Uploads
Mangione was also the owner of a YouTube account that was initiated in Jan. 2024. On Dec. 9, a video came out titled “The Truth”. The video was a 60-second timer with the words “If you see this, I am already under arrest.” When the time goes off, the screen flashes, and “Soon…” and “December 11” appear in the bottom right corner. On Dec. 11 wanted posters were found littering New York with the faces and names of health insurance representatives. Thompson’s face was on one of these posters but it was crossed out with a red “X”.
Another video was uploaded on Dec. 9 called “Part 2” and it had a message written in binary code. When the message was decoded it read, “The truth will set me free.”
The Bigger Picture
So, here is everything known in a nutshell: Brian Thompson was shot in New York on Dec. 4 in Manhattan but the shooter escaped. Luigi Mangione is identified as the suspect in the murder. He was arrested in McDonalds in Altoona, PA. The police found a gun, large amounts of money, fake I.D’s, and written manifestos on his person. They also recovered a cell phone and backpack with Monopoly money inside along the escape route. Mangione is currently being held in Pennsylvania but is awaiting extradition to Rikers Island in New York, as well as trial. He came from an affluent family who worked in the healthcare industry known as malpractitioners, and he had a spinal condition of his own. Mangione may be metaphorically playing Monopoly and the number 286 keeps showing up everywhere.
As of now, the biggest question lies if Luigi Mangione is working alone, and if not, when are the other players going to take their turn?
