Mangione’s Maryland family have been wealthy repeat donors to health facilities, while his mother and sister are both doctors.
Luigi Mangione’s mother reported him missing weeks before he was charged in connection with the murder of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson.
Mangione was arrested on Monday while eating at a McDonald’s in Altoona, Pennsylvania, after he was recognized from images circulated by the NYPD last week. He allegedly possessed a ghost gun, a suppressor, “multiple fraudulent IDs,” and a handwritten 262-word manifesto that slammed the health-care system, authorities said.
New York prosecutors filed murder charges against the 26-year-old suspect hours after he faced gun-crime charges in Pennsylvania on Monday.
“Our family is shocked and devastated by Luigi’s arrest,” the family said in a statement shared by his cousin Nino Mangione, a Baltimore County Republican delegate, on his X account late Monday.
“We offer our prayers to the family of Brian Thompson and we ask people to pray for all involved. We are devastated by this news,” the Mangione family said.
The family said they couldn’t comment on any news reports about Mangione, who was arrested after a five-day manhunt.
Nicholas was born in Baltimore’s Little Italy to a poor family but worked his way up from nothing, reports the Daily Mail. He had 10 children, including Luigi’s father, Louis. He and wife, Mary, lived in a $1.9-million mansion on their country club property.
His mother, Kathleen Zannino Mangione, owns a boutique travel company. At present, Kathleen is in the midst of a medical residency at UT Southwestern Medical Center in Dallas after graduating from Vanderbilt medical school. His sister MariaSanta Mangione is also a respected doctor.
For decades, the Mangione family has supported the Greater Baltimore Medical Center (GBMC), donating more than $1 million to the hospital. Because of the family’s dedicated support, the hospital went on to name its high-risk obstetrics unit after them.
In addition to funding GBMC, the family has also shared their philanthropy efforts with other top-name medical facilities, including the Kennedy Krieger Institute, the University of Maryland St. Joseph Medical Center and St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital.
The suspect’s own health has been poor, according to family and friends. He suffered from chronic back pain and underwent major surgery for it in 2023, but in the months afterward, he lost touch with friends and family, an acquaintance told The New York Times.
Luigi Mangione hasn’t made any statements since his arrest, say Pennsylvania law enforcement officials. He was reported to police by a McDonald’s employee who recognized him from photos released by the New York Police Department.
Local cops approached him while he was eating at the restaurant. He gave them a fake New Jersey ID — believed to be the same one he used when checking into a Manhattan hostel before the killing, reports the Post.
After he was taken into custody police discovered a ghost gun with a silencer on him and other items such as written manifesto claiming, “these parasites had it coming … I do apologize for any strife and trauma but it had to be done.”
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