By Elisabeth Palacios

Wednesday, December 4th, United Healthcare (the largest health insurance company in the U.S) CEO Brian Thompson was shot and killed in a sudden attack in Midtown, Manhattan. New York police urgently hunted down the man responsible, and successfully arrested the ‘strong suspect of interest’ in Pennsylvania after five days. 

Thompson was on his way to an investor’s conference when the incident happened in broad daylight, and it was said to be premeditated by the city’s police commissioner. The conference was at the New York Hilton hotel, and the gunman was already waiting there for the CEO to arrive for at least 10 minutes prior. 

The suspect is identified as Luigi Mangione, a 26-year-old Ivy-League graduate (of the University of Pennsylvania) from Maryland. Due to multiple surveillance photos that have been circulating the media–one that showed his entire face from checking in at another hotel, he was spotted by an employee at the McDonald’s he had eaten at in Altoona, PA. They tipped two local police officers, and Mangione was soon identified as the same man in the surveillance photos. 

Further investigation shows that the murder was more planned than anticipated; on December 7th, the NYPD found a backpack in a nearby park that allegedly belonged to Mangione, only with 2 things: a jacket of his and a bunch of Monopoly money. At the time of arrest, police also found the 3D printed gun and silencer that was used, multiple fake IDs, and a 262-word handwritten manifesto that he wrote regarding the murder. It criticized U.S health corporations and named United Healthcare explicitly; he admitted to the murder and explained his motivations, stating, “I do apologize for any strife and trauma, but it had to be done.”

As the news of Brian Thompson’s death quickly got popular on social media, much of the public showed very little to no sympathy—and some even celebrated Mangione’s actions. However, traditional media and U.S government officials have mainly shown remorse and condemned both this act of violence and those sympathizing with Mangione. Overall, it is clear this event has sparked an intense conversation about the U.S healthcare system and why millions of Americans who rely on it are extremely unhappy.