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What's New
Luigi Mangione, the alleged killer of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson, has received dozens of letters and emails as well as monetary support while in prison, a report by the New York Post has revealed.
Why It Matters
Mangione is seen as a hero by some people who have grievances with corporate America and the private healthcare industry.
A notebook found on Mangione during his arrest included several pages of writing that "express hostility towards the health insurance industry and wealthy executives in particular," according to a federal complaint unsealed Thursday.
UnitedHealthcare said that Mangione was never one of its clients.
Mangione's supporters have flocked to social media, posting videos admiring the 26-year-old Ivy League graduate for the crime he has been accused of and even his looks. Some have even offered to pay his legal bills, according to Mangione's Pennsylvania lawyer Thomas Dickey.
What To Know
Mangione faces state charges in New York, including murder as an act of terrorism, and federal murder, stalking and weapons charges after he allegedly gunned down Thompson, 50, while he was walking alone to an annual investor conference in Midtown, Manhattan on December 4. He has pleaded not guilty to forgery and weapons charges filed against him in Pennsylvania.
It seems that some people's admiration for Mangione has exceeded beyond social media, with Mangione reportedly receiving dozens of communications and over 100 commissary deposits.
The Post reported, citing correction officials, that Mangione received 54 emails, 87 physical letters and 163 deposits into an account allowing him to buy commissary items while at the Huntingdon State Correctional Institute in Pennsylvania.
Mangione was held at the Pennsylvania prison following his arrest in Altoona after a McDonald's customer recognized him from police photos of Thomspon's killer. On Thursday, he waived his right to contest extradition and was whisked away to New York. He is now being held at the Metropolitan Detention Center (MDC) Brooklyn.
The number of letters sent to Mangione has actually grown since the Post learned of Mangione's fan mail with Maria Bivens, press secretary for Pennsylvania's Department of Corrections, telling Newsweek via email Saturday afternoon that Mangione has received "127 pieces of mail" as of Friday afternoon.
Bivens could not disclose the contents of the communications Mangione was receiving as "contents of his private mail is not public information."
The Post has called them "love letters" given what some people have shared online about the communications.
Bivens, meanwhile, could not say how much money was deposited into Mangione's commissary account, telling Newsweek, "His banking/account information is not public information."
Newsweek also reached out to MDC Brooklyn to see whether Mangione had received any communications or commissary deposits while being held there, but the prison said the requested information is "not public information."
What Are People Saying
One TikTok user who said she wrote to Mangione said in a video posted last week that she told him, "I offer my friendship and support. I have seen what you've shared and I acknowledge your suffering. I understand. I see you."
Another user on TikTok said penning to Mangione was her first experience writing a letter to someone in prison.
"It feels cathartic and sexy to want to do something and then do it, I mean writing a letter," the user said in a video posted this week.
A third TikToker shared a screenshot of an electronic letter that was written to Mangione that read, in part, "I'm certain you've received countless messages from people all over the world in the last couple of days the internet is actually in love with you lol."
NYPD Commissioner Jessica Tisch told reporters after Mangione was indicted on state charges that authorities "have seen a shocking and appalling celebration of cold-blooded murder."
"Let me say this—plainly there is no heroism in what Mangione did," she added.
What Happens Next
Mangione faces life in prison without parole if he is convicted of murder as an act of terrorism in New York. The new federal charges put him at risk of the death penalty.
The suspected killer will next appear in court on January 18, 2025. If it is anything like his past court appearances, spectators will be waiting outside holding signs in support of him.
Update 12/22/24, 4 p.m. ET: This article has been updated with comment from MDC Brooklyn.
About the writer
Rachel Dobkin is a Newsweek reporter based in New York. Her focus is reporting on politics. Rachel joined Newsweek in ... Read more