The arrest of Luigi Mangione, the 26-year-old suspect in the killing of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson, has upended the investigation with revelations of his ties to a prominent Maryland political family. Mangione, a former Ivy League student and self-described anti-capitalist, was taken into custody Monday at a McDonald’s in Altoona, Pennsylvania, marking a critical development in the six-day manhunt.
Law enforcement sources said Mangione was found with a handwritten manifesto critical of the healthcare industry, accusing corporations of exploiting vulnerable patients for profit. Officials believe Mangione fled New York City immediately after the shooting, traveling by Greyhound bus to Altoona, where his arrest occurred without incident. Authorities also recovered a bolt-action firearm matching the description of the weapon used in Thompson’s murder and fake identification.
Mangione was born in Maryland to Louis and Kathleen Zannino Mangione. According to Baltimore Fishbowl, he is registered to vote at his family’s residence on Hayfields Road in Cockeysville, next to their golf course. In 2020, he obtained an absentee ballot in Maryland.
His mother, Kathleen, is part of the family that owns and manages the Charles S. Zannino Funeral Home in Highlandtown. Mangione is the cousin of Baltimore County Delegate Nino Mangione, who represents District 42A as a Republican, a revelation recently confirmed by the lawmaker’s office.
11 News acquired a letter in which Henry Smyth, the head of school at Gilman, addressed the community, stating, “We recently became aware that the person arrested in connection with the killing of the UnitedHealthcare CEO is a Gilman alumnus, Luigi Mangione, Class of 2016. We do not have any information other than what is being reported in the news.”
“This is deeply distressing news on top of an already awful situation. Our hearts go out to everyone affected. Here on campus, our focus will remain on caring for and educating the boys. Thank you for your understanding.”
Aaron Cranston, who has known Mangione since elementary school and was his wrestling teammate, described him as “surprisingly social for his obvious intelligence” to Baltimore Fishbowl. Cranston shared that their friendship began around fifth or sixth grade. “He was so smart that he knew that middle school didn’t matter, and he [messed] around the whole time,” Cranston recalled.
“Then, as soon as ninth grade, he pretty much maintained a 4.0 GPA because he knew that it actually mattered.” In middle school, Mangione created a video game app that challenged players to navigate a paper airplane through falling obstacles. “He was definitely kind and a pretty social guy. I would say a curious and pretty entrepreneurial guy who was always working on some kind of extra project,” Cranston noted.
“Luigi always seemed to be like a problem-solver or someone who can kind of figure out anything,” Cranston explained. “He never shied away from trying to find a solution to a complex problem. So for him to resort to violence….”
Mangione graduated as the valedictorian of his 2016 class at Gilman School, where he was highlighted in a Baltimore Fishbowl article about graduation speeches that year.
“The teachers at Gilman influenced me especially,” he stated in an email. He explained that his teachers encouraged him not only to pursue high grades but also to develop “more of an excitement to explore academic topics outside of the classroom.”
