The Manhunt: 1
The Manhunt: 1Update: 2025-03-24
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UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson is gunned down in Manhattan, sparking a multi-state manhunt. As investigators close in on a suspect, shocking details emerge—was this murder a statement?
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00:00:00
Wondery Plus subscribers can binge all episodes of Longcrimes Luigi early and ad-free right now.
00:00:07
Join Wondery Plus in the Wondery app, Apple Podcasts or Spotify and get ad-free access to more thrilling Longcrimes series including Daily Episodes of Sidebar with Jesse Weber.
00:00:17
The following podcast explores an active investigation unfolding in real time.
00:00:22
Luigi Manjone is considered innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.
00:00:27
December 4th 6.45am Midtown Manhattan is just waking up.
00:00:42
That's the witching hour.
00:00:43
That's the time of the day where things really start to come alive in the city.
00:00:47
The December air in New York City carries the crispite of winter.
00:00:51
As Brian Thompson, CEO of United Healthcare, steps out of the Marriott Hotel on West 54th Street heading toward the Midtown Hilton on 6th Avenue, where the United Health Group Annual Investors meeting is about to kick off.
00:01:05
Thompson had built his successful career on numbers, profits and policies.
00:01:10
We're talking about the CEO of the biggest private health insurance corporation in the world in human history.
00:01:16
And he's on his way to a conference to be one of the keynote speakers.
00:01:22
As he makes the three-minute walk from the Marriott to the Hilton preparing for the biggest meeting of the year, he has no idea that someone is watching him.
00:01:32
He's approached from behind by this a salad who pulls out a weapon and starts firing at him.
00:01:39
A gunshot rings out.
00:01:41
Then another.
00:01:43
And then he's hit, he's struck multiple times, and then he goes down to the floor.
00:01:48
The gunman doesn't linger.
00:01:50
He immediately flees speeding away on an e-bike.
00:01:54
And New York City became a hunting ground.
00:01:57
You have a population of about 8.5 million people.
00:02:00
You have an undocumented population in hundreds of thousands.
00:02:03
You have two to three million people that commute into New York City every day, either as visitors or as commuters to go to work or school.
00:02:12
It seems 100% like a needle in a haystack.
00:02:14
If you're going to run from somebody, why would you go out in the middle of nowhere and see if you can blend in when you have 9 million people that you can blend in and pretty much everybody's been taught the mind your own business?
00:02:25
So New York City is a great place to hide and play sight.
00:02:29
The NYPD knew instantly this would be no easy feat.
00:02:33
The killer had vanished into the chaos of Midtown, slipping away like a ghost.
00:02:39
But the police had one certainty.
00:02:41
This wasn't a professional hit, this was done by an amateur.
00:02:45
And they would find him.
00:02:46
A sort of a professional, court of court professional assassin would have been super stealth.
00:02:51
You would have seen where the shot came from, and certainly you wouldn't have seen him running away to grab a bike and living behind a number of items with, you know, eventually what we would find out to be a treasure trove of clues.
00:03:04
The first clues were scattered at the crime scene outside the Hilton on West 54th Street.
00:03:09
His detectives crouched over Thompson's body.
00:03:12
The sidewalks still slick with blood.
00:03:14
Their eyes fell on something chilling.
00:03:17
Three spent cartridge cases.
00:03:20
Each one was marked with a single word, etched into the metal like a sinister calling card.
00:03:26
Delay, deny, depose.
00:03:30
This wasn't random.
00:03:32
This was personal.
00:03:34
This was somebody who was just committed cold blooded murder, but there was a reason for it.
00:03:39
The target.
00:03:40
This was his mark.
00:03:41
And that's what he had claimed to do with that's what he carried out.
00:03:45
From law and crime and twist, I'm Jesse Weber, and this is Luigi.
00:03:53
Whether he knew it or not, the gunman fled the scene with a trace.
00:03:59
Outside the Hilton Midtown police quickly began gathering scraps of physical evidence.
00:04:04
Others retired NYPD detective Tom Verney, recalling what they first found.
00:04:09
There was a water bottle, there was a cell phone, and a granola bar wrapper.
00:04:14
Former FBI agent Jerry Clark says these might just be little clues, but with an essential trait.
00:04:21
DNA will be on it.
00:04:23
But they still had to find the perpetrator to make a match.
00:04:26
And it became like a warehouse wall, sort of a search.
00:04:29
The clock was ticking.
00:04:31
To get someone who's thinking irrationally and now they're armed with a weapon and ammunition.
00:04:35
That's never a good combination, at least from the law enforcement side of things.
00:04:40
And that's why it was important to try to track him down as quickly as possible.
00:04:44
Nobody knew what this guy might be capable of.
00:04:47
He's on the run, and he's going to become desperate.
00:04:50
And when people become desperate and they start to get cornered, like a cornered rat, you know, they're going to attack.
00:04:55
And sometimes when they attack, even if their focus is to try to stop the police, a law enforcement from getting them, that attack could inevitably encompass a wide range of other people as collateral damage.
00:05:06
So that's why law enforcement was very concerned.
00:05:09
Not only for the other potential targets that he may have had in his crosshairs, but for the general public at large, because now you had someone who was going to become increasingly desperate to try to get away and not get caught.
00:05:19
And then other people could have been roped into that scope of violence.
00:05:22
And that's what we were worried about.
00:05:26
And the days following the shooting, the NYPD launched an exhaustive effort to track down the suspected killer.
00:05:33
Their first breakthrough came from the city's vast network of surveillance cameras, detectives meticulously sifted through hours of footage.
00:05:42
Former FBI and CIA agent Tracy Walder explains how they retrace the suspect's steps before and after the crime.
00:05:52
They almost traced his movement backwards to see what his movements were going to be forward.
00:05:57
Here's what they found from the morning of the shooting.
00:05:59
At 5.41 a.m., cameras inside a Starbucks on West 56th Street in 6th Avenue recorded the shooter as he stepped inside, appearing calm.
00:06:09
He placed an order, waited briefly, then exited, disappearing into the shadows of towering buildings.
00:06:16
Nearly an hour later, at 6.30 a.m., another camera caught him just outside the Hilton Midtown Hotel.
00:06:22
He walked along the sidewalk, phone pressed to his ear.
00:06:26
His movements deliberate but unhurried.
00:06:29
The streets around him remained quiet, the morning rush, not yet in full swing.
00:06:35
15 minutes later at 6.45 a.m., the shooter reappeared.
00:06:39
This time, approaching United Healthcare CEO Brian Thompson from behind.
00:06:45
The moment was brief, captured in chilling clarity by a security camera near the hotel entrance.
00:06:53
Without warning, he raised a firearm, racked the pistol after it appeared to jam, fired multiple shots at close range, ultimately striking Thompson in the back and leg.
00:07:05
The executive collapsed, while the shooter hesitated for only a second before slipping the gun back into his jacket.
00:07:13
His movements were carefully analyzed, each frame of footage bringing law enforcement closer to understanding his escape route.
00:07:20
By 6.48 a.m., he was gone.
00:07:24
Cameras followed his retreat as he crossed the street, ducked into an alley, and mounted a bicycle.
00:07:29
In the final frames, he could be seen peddling into the vast expanse of Central Park, vanishing into the early morning haze.
00:07:38
It was a seemingly flawless escape, but the digital eye of the city had already etched his movements into evidence, and there was more.
00:07:49
As detectives followed the suspect's trail further backwards, more clues surfaced.
00:07:55
They discovered he had checked into a New York City hostel using a fraudulent New Jersey ID, and on CCTV footage from the hostel, one critical image emerged,
00:08:06
and all the security footage before the suspect's face had been covered.
00:08:12
When he was at the hostel and lowered his mask enough where you had a full facial picture of him, a male figure cloaked in shadows, a hood drawn tightly over his head, obscuring much of his face,
00:08:24
but the most anyone had captured until now.
00:08:27
He was clearly identifiable, and that was really the key.
00:08:32
The dim lighting cast an eerie glow, accentuating the grainy texture of the footage, a faint smile plays on his lips, almost out of place, a cryptic expression that could be amusement,
00:08:44
confidence, or something far more chilling.
00:08:48
A scar for Gator wraps around his neck, concealing the lower half of his face, adding to the anonymity.
00:08:54
His jacket is thick, practical, blending into the muted tones of the background.
00:09:00
So the identity becomes really important.
00:09:02
Now, once that picture got plastered out into every part of the country, in every mode of media, whether it be news media, social media or not, everyone was kind of looking for this dude.
00:09:13
It was a calculated move, one that ignited a flood of tips from concerned citizens and brought them closer to their suspect, who was still at large.
00:09:24
No one knew where he was, but law enforcement knew one thing.
00:09:28
He was on the run, a national alert went out.
00:09:32
Federal agents in the joint terrorism task force joined the hunt, facial recognition software scoured thousands of surveillance images looking for the man in the hood.
00:09:41
It was very quiet 6.45 in the morning, so you don't have a lot that way, but you do have every different escape route or direction that he could go and find cameras that might have picked him up,
00:09:54
and then they pick him up on the bike, and then they pick him up again.
00:09:58
Now you're starting to piece together the direction, and where he might be headed.
00:10:03
At 6.56 a.m., he emerges from Central Park, riding swiftly into the waking city.
00:10:09
The streets are beginning to stir, but he moves with purpose, weaving through the morning.
00:10:15
By 6.58 a.m., surveillance cameras capture him at 85th street in Columbus Avenue still on the e-bike, cutting through the early rush with precision.
00:10:25
Just two minutes later, at 7 a.m., he abandons the bike, now moving northbound on 86th street on foot, blending into the flow of pedestrians.
00:10:36
At 7.04 a.m., he hails a cab, slipping into the back seat, his escape is in motion.
00:10:42
By 7.30 a.m., he's seen near the George Washington Bridge close to the Port Authority bus station on 178th street.
00:10:50
The final piece of footage shows him stepping inside the doors closing behind him.
00:10:55
And then he's gone.
00:10:58
Cameras and police had lost him, but they did find another clue deep in Central Park.
00:11:05
While canvassing with drones, police noticed something out of place, a discarded backpack hastily hidden behind a pile of leaves.
00:11:15
He just killed somebody, so you're going to absolutely search that bag, you're going to gain any evidence that's in it, you're going to utilize that evidence to attempt to find him, and certainly at trial to show his mind and his processes for the crime that he committed.
00:11:30
Inside was a Tommy Hill figure jacket and bizarrely a stack of monopoly money.
00:11:38
It was strange, almost taunting.
00:11:41
Was this a message a game?
00:11:44
This early on in an investigation,
00:11:57
those questions don't matter.
00:12:09
While the NYPD were on their breathless hunt, news of the murder sent shockwaves through the country.
00:12:15
The CEO of one of America's largest corporations, gunned down in broad daylight, it seemed unthinkable.
00:12:24
At United Healthcare headquarters in Minnetaka, Minnesota, the company lowered its flags to half staff.
00:12:30
Brian Thompson's colleagues, family, and friends were in mourning.
00:12:35
But outside corporate boardrooms, a different reaction was forming.
00:12:40
Online, the unknown assailant's actions became a symbol.
00:12:45
Was this an act of vengeance against a system that had denied healthcare to millions?
00:12:49
It was only a matter of time before the public would get their answer.
00:12:54
Five days later, came the tip that cracked the case across state lines.
00:12:59
Earlier this morning, in Altoona, Pennsylvania, members of the Altoona Police Department arrested Luigi Mangione, a 26 year old male on firearms charges.
00:13:11
At this time, he is believed to be our person of interest in the brazen, targeted murder of Brian Thompson, CEO of United Healthcare last Wednesday in Midtown Manhattan.
00:13:24
Here's how it all went down.
00:13:26
Remember that grainy photo from the hostel?
00:13:28
This picture was obtained by the NYPD during one of the extensive video canvases.
00:13:33
We took that photograph, and we asked for the public's help in identifying this subject.
00:13:37
And the public responded, "Hunges of Titch" began to pour into our hotline.
00:13:42
Each tip was investigated thoroughly, and we began to release additional photographs as they came into our possession.
00:13:48
The NYPD provided these photos to numerous media outlets, local, national, and international outlets released the photo via television, print, social media, and online content.
00:14:00
By December 9th, it had reached a customer at a McDonald's in Altoona, Pennsylvania, nearly 300 miles from the Hilton in Midtown, Manhattan.
00:14:08
Luckily, a citizen in Pennsylvania recognized our subject and called local law enforcement.
00:14:14
Members of the Altoona Police Department responded to the call, and based on their investigation, they notified the NYPD.
00:14:21
It was a customer who recognized him first.
00:14:23
They had seen the news, the grainy security footage of the gunman walking away from the crime scene.
00:14:29
It was something about the way he moved, and his sharp, but cautious eyes that triggered an instinct.
00:14:36
He sat alone at a small table in the McDonald's, his laptop opened beside a worn backpack.
00:14:42
A medical mask covered the lower half of his face, a brown beanie pulled low over his head, and a dark jacket wrapped tightly around him.
00:14:51
He seemed lost and thought, focused on his meal.
00:14:54
Unbeknownst to him, the customer had alerted an employee whose fingers trembled as they dial 911.
00:15:02
And within minutes, unmarked police vehicles swarmed the parking lot.
00:15:07
Officers moved in silently, they're breath visible in the winter chill.
00:15:10
They found the suspect calmly reading, unaware that his time was up.
00:15:16
The quiet anonymity he had sought in a small town fast food franchise had vanished in an instant, when moments later police busted through the doors.
00:15:25
For days, their suspect had stayed ahead of them.
00:15:27
He had moved carefully, covering his tracks, keeping low.
00:15:31
But now, he had nowhere to go.
00:15:35
When they finally took him down, there was no dramatic shootout, no last words, just the quiet click of handcuffs.
00:15:44
A photo shared by the Pennsylvania State Police captured the scene.
00:15:48
Angione, with his blue mask dangling loosely from one ear, mid-bite into what looked like a hash brown.
00:15:55
Officers quickly seized the backpack on his person.
00:15:58
He's in position of what's called a ghost gun, which is something you can literally download off the internet and then print out on a 3D printer.
00:16:05
Its black polymer frame fitted with a metal slide alongside it lay a homemade suppressor and a loaded, glauque magazine containing six nine millimeter rounds.
00:16:16
One of them, a hollow point, designed to inflict maximum damage.
00:16:21
And there was more.
00:16:23
A falsified New Jersey driver's license under the name Mark Rosario hinted at an attempt to hide his true identity, the same alias he had used when checking into a New York City hostile before his arrest.
00:16:35
A stash of cash totaling $10,000, including $2,000 in foreign currency, as if he had been perhaps preparing for a swift escape.
00:16:44
A box of medical masks, a seemingly mundane detail yet one that completed the picture of a man on the run.
00:16:52
And a US passport that confirmed his real name, Luigi Mangione.
00:16:59
As investigators pieced together the evidence it became clear, Mangione wasn't just another anonymous face in a fast food restaurant.
00:17:07
He was the prime suspect in the murder of United Healthcare CEO Brian Thompson and the man hunt that had gripped the nation had finally come to an end.
00:17:17
And to the authorities, this was definitely the guy they say shot Brian Thompson.
00:17:23
They have him captured on film shooting another human being.
00:17:27
Gobs of physical evidence that connect him to the actual crime.
00:17:31
We have a weapon.
00:17:32
We have ammunition.
00:17:33
We have fingerprints, fingerprints on the weapon, we have fingerprints on a water bottle.
00:17:38
The NYPD working in lockstep with the FBI in the Manhattan District Attorney's Office immediately dispatched detectives to Altoona.
00:17:46
And so consequence becomes the biggest issue now for him.
00:17:52
And for the American people, the unmasking of Luigi Mangione slowly began to expose another massive issue.
00:18:01
On platforms like X, TikTok and Reddit, initial reactions were a mix of shock, outrage, and conspiracy theories.
00:18:11
Many were horrified by the apparent cold-blooded murder of a corporate executive in broad daylight, while others speculated about Mangione's alleged motives digging through his digital footprint in search of clues.
00:18:23
As more details about Mangione's background surfaced, including his criticisms of corporate greed and healthcare industry, a segment of the internet began to lionize him.
00:18:38
Following his arrest in Altoona, Luigi Mangione found himself facing a series of serious charges in Blair County.
00:18:45
"The fact that he was caught with a weapon with ammunition, that local jurisdiction is now going to want to file charges."
00:18:52
Prosecutors wasted no time charging him with multiple offenses the day of his arrest, including carrying a firearm without a license, forgery, false identification to law enforcement,
00:19:03
and possession of instruments of crime.
00:19:06
Luigi Mangione's first appearance in Blair County Court on December 10, 2024 was anything, but quiet.
00:19:15
As he was led into the courthouse in Holidaysburg wearing shackles in an orange jumpsuit, cameras flashed while reporters shouted questions, but it was Mangione's own voice that cut through the noise.
00:19:34
He barked at the press, his frustration unmistakable.
00:19:38
He carried himself with an air of defiance, but once inside the courtroom, his demeanor shifted.
00:19:45
Seated before the judge, Mangione answered in short, clipped responses.
00:19:49
His defense attorney, Thomas M.
00:19:51
Dickie, leaned in often to whispering in hushed tones.
00:19:55
Behind him, a row of NYPD officers sat like a wall of silent enforcers.
00:20:01
Their presence of reminder that New York was waiting.
00:20:06
But getting him back to the big apple, Vernie explains, "That's where things get a bit more complicated."
00:20:21
His arraignment at the Blair County Courthouse was swift, and any hope of walking free while awaiting further proceedings was crushed when the judge denied bail.
00:20:30
The real weight of the proceedings, however, lay in the extradition battle.
00:20:34
Initially, he resisted extradition, forcing Pennsylvania and New York officials to coordinate on securing a governor's warrant.
00:20:50
Needless to say, they got that warrant in a snap, but just 10 days later, in a surprising turn on December 19, 2024, Mangione reversed course,
00:21:02
waving his right to an extradition hearing.
00:21:05
His transfer was set in motion.
00:21:09
After days of legal wrangling, he would be handed over to New York authorities, where he would face the most serious charges yet.
00:21:18
And outside the Courthouse in Blair County, the scene was just as tense.
00:21:25
Protesters gathered carrying signs that read free Luigi, invoicing their frustrations with the healthcare system.
00:21:31
A system they believed had failed people like Mangione.
00:21:34
He's awoken to a true issue.
00:21:43
They chanted their voices echoing off the Courthouse walls as cameras captured every moment of the unfolding drama.
00:21:50
The case had evolved beyond one man and one crime.
00:21:53
It had become a symbol of something larger, a reflection of deeper societal struggles.
00:22:00
As Mangione was led away under tight security, the questions remained.
00:22:04
What had driven him to this point?
00:22:06
And how would the story unfold once he faced trial in New York?
00:22:11
As we alleged, the defendant in that case brazenly shot Mr.
00:22:14
Thompson twice in Midtown, Manhattan.
00:22:16
I was targeted, pre-meditated, it meant to so terror.
00:22:19
Accordingly, we charged him here in Manhattan earlier this week with murder in the first degree among additional charges, which carry the maximum sentence of life without parole.
00:22:29
This morning, the defendant waived extradition in Pennsylvania and was picked up and is in the process of being transported by the NYPD here to New York.
00:22:39
I'll let the Sudden District for New York speak for itself about their plans, but I do want to note that speaking generally, we've had state prosecutions and federal prosecutions proceed as parallel matters and we're in conversations with our law enforcement counterparts.
00:22:53
Upon his arrival in Brooklyn, he was immediately placed in the Metropolitan Detention Center, a stark new reality in a case that is already captured national attention.
00:23:04
Now in New York, Mangione faced the full weight of the law, state charges of first degree murder as an act of terrorism and federal charges that included interstate stalking and murder with a firearm.
00:23:17
The latter carried the most severe consequences with the potential for the death penalty looming over him.
00:23:27
Just before Christmas, the Manhattan Supreme Court was packed, buzzing with tension as Mangione entered in shackles.
00:23:34
He wasn't slouched or defeated, dressed in a maroon sweater over a white collared shirt, tan khakis and prison-issued orange shoes.
00:23:42
He walked in scanning the room, a faint smirk tugging at the corners of his mouth.
00:23:47
When the charges were read, first degree murder terrorism, he didn't flinch.
00:23:52
His voice was steady, firm, not guilty.
00:23:57
A simple declaration, a one that sent murmurs rippling through the courtroom.
00:24:02
His attorney, Karen Friedman-Agnifala, wasted no time going on the offensive.
00:24:07
She ripped into city officials.
00:24:09
These federal and state prosecutors are coordinating with one another, and at the expense of him, they have conflicting theories in their indictments, and they are literally treating him like he is some sort of political fodder,
00:24:23
like some sort of spectacle.
00:24:25
He was on display for everyone to see in the biggest stage perp walk I've ever seen in my career.
00:24:32
It was absolutely unnecessary.
00:24:34
This is political theater, she argued, warning that the media's circus threatened her clients right to a fair trial.
00:24:40
He's not a symbol.
00:24:41
He's somebody who is afforded the right to a fair trial.
00:24:45
He's innocent until proven guilty, and we're going to fight these charges, whether it's in the state or federal, to the fullest extent.
00:24:52
But the real show was outside.
00:24:55
Hundreds of supporters had gathered, waving signs and chanting their battle cry.
00:25:05
Some wore T-shirts emblazoned with his face.
00:25:08
Others held banners painting him as a revolutionary figure.
00:25:12
To them, he wasn't just a man on trial.
00:25:14
He was a symbol, a hero striking back at corporate America, a vigilante of sorts.
00:25:22
His actions would soon spark intense debate, with a wave of public supporters rallying behind him, whether seen as a martyr or a menace, one thing was certain.
00:25:33
The trial ahead would be anything but ordinary.
00:25:39
And as the hearing ended, Manjioni was led away, still calm, still unreadable.
00:25:46
But one thing was unmistakably clear,
00:26:01
on the next episode of Luigi.
00:26:04
If you looked at the way the major press was talking about it, we all have to come together and condemn this and basically say nothing else.
00:26:09
I mean, yes, we don't want society where people can go around and just vigilante justice, you know, harm people.
00:26:15
It's just complete incuriosity as part of the major press to think, why are these ordinary people who are not particularly political, glomming on to this?
00:26:22
There was no curiosity about it.
00:26:23
And then you talk to them and you find, oh, they're not promoter, but they also are frustrated with the healthcare system.
00:26:29
This has been a long crime and twist production.
00:26:32
I'm your host, Jesse Weber.
00:26:34
For long crime, our executive producer is Jessica Louter.
00:26:37
Our writer and senior producer is Cooper Mall.
00:26:39
Our editor is Anna McLean.
00:26:41
Our bookers are Diane Kaye and Alyssa Fisher.
00:26:44
Legal review by Elizabeth Voolay and Stephanie Beach.
00:26:46
Key art design by Sean Panzerra.
00:26:49
For twist media, our executive producers are Jane Latman and Heruka Wakamoto.
00:26:56
Follow Long Crimes Luigi on the Wondery app.
00:26:58
You can binge the entire series early and ad-free right now on Wondery Plus.
00:27:03
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00:27:14
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