Luigi Mangione: This is how friends, family describe the UnitedHealth shooting suspect

Luigi Mangione’s friends and family members are stunned that the 26-year-old Ivy League graduate is the suspected shooter of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson.

A handful Mangione’s friends have spoken to the media about him after his arrest Monday and subsequent murder charge, saying the Mangione they knew was a wise, quiet intellectual who struggled with back pain after 2023 back surgery.

In their first and only statement at the time of publication, Mangione’s family said Tuesday: “We are unfortunately unable to comment on news reports regarding Luigi Mangione. We only know what we have read in the media’.

The statement, released by Mangione’s cousin, Maryland Legislator Nino Mangionecontinued. “Our family is shocked and devastated by Luigi’s arrest. Our prayers go out to Brian Thompson’s family and we ask people to pray for everyone involved. We are devastated by this news.”

Former classmate of Mangione speaks to Newsweek

Luigi Mangione’s academic prowess was not lost on his former peers at the all-boys Gilman School in Baltimore, Maryland, a former classmate said. Newsweek Tuesday evening.

The former student, who requested anonymity because of the current circumstances, said the boys from the 2016 graduating class were close-knit and knew each other’s families.

“Yes, it’s been quite a long time, but Luigi was a really social boy,” said the former classmate. “A really nice guy. Very intelligent. I mean, as everyone knows, he was our class valedictorian. Extremely, extremely intelligent.

“So, it definitely came as a surprise, given what he did. I definitely never would have seen that coming or anything like that.”

As word spread about Mangione and his arrest for allegedly killing Thompson, it sparked discussions and old memories among former Gilman attendees.

While the ex-student told Newsweek that he and Mangione broke up after high school, they still followed each other on social media. He added that Gilman instilled values ​​including honor, integrity, excellence and respect.

“You can see everything on social media, Twitter, Instagramall that kind of stuff,” he said. “And it’s all Luigi, whether it’s a meme, whether it’s a threat on Twitter, stuff like that. It’s definitely weird stuff, a little surreal.

“In terms of talking with classmates or former classmates, we definitely all share pretty much the same feeling. None of us had anything they didn’t like about Luigi, like in terms of memories or personality. He was always, as I said, a really social guy. It’s a really weird situation.

Hawaii Roommate Says Dating Wasn’t Possible

Mangione spent six months in 2022 at Surfbreak, a Honolulu-based co-working space for remote workers, where he was among the first 20 residents to pay $2,000 a month.

Surfbreak founder RJ Martin described Mangione as an ideal member of the community who was optimistic and eager to give back.

Martin told New York Times that Mangione experienced frequent back pain.

“His spine was a little crooked,” Martin said. “He said his lower vertebrae were almost like half an inch off, and I think it pinched a nerve.”

Because of the pain, Martin added that Mangione “knew that dating and be physically intimate with his back condition it wasn’t possible.”

Mangione left Hawaii and received back surgery in 2023. Martin said Mangione sent him pictures of the back surgery.

The friends exchanged sporadic texts over the following months, but never saw each other in person after that.

More friends speak to New York Times, NPR

Two more of Mangione’s friends spoke New York Times about their experiences with the suspected shooter.

Aaron Cranston befriended Mangione at Gilman High School, where Mangione was valedictorian. Cranston said The Times maybe it was Mangione one of the brightest students at the elite private school.

“He was a big believer in the power of technology to change the world,” Cranston said of Mangione, noting that Mangione was social, friendly and never particularly political.

Martin said Mangione created a mobile app before he was in college that allowed users to fly a paper airplane through obstacles.

Freddie Leatherbury also attended Gilman with Mangione. They were football, track and cross country teammates.

“They’re both such disciplined sports. That says a lot about who he was as a student,” Leatherbury said The Times. “He was very clever, quite a big maths guy, really well-read and quite well-liked, to be honest. I don’t have any bad memories of him. He had a very healthy circle of friends.”

Leathebury also spoke to NPR and said that while he didn’t stay close to Mangione, he knew he had back problems.

“For the past few years, Mangione lived in Hawaii, and the people I spoke to said his back pain prevented him from surfing, hiking and generally enjoying life as a 20-year-old there,” Leathebury said.

“It also appears that Mangione spent a lot of time online following influencers who are big on masculinity-focused self-help advice. He followed libertarian and right-wing influencers such as Joe Rogan and a fitness guru who offered advice on things like getting a gym membership instead of taking anti-depressants.

“And then, over the last year or so, things began to take a more disturbing tone. Mangione even left an online comment praising the authorship of Theodore Kaczynski, the domestic terrorist also known as the Unabomber,” Leathebury said.

“He had everything right,” Martin said of Mangione. “And on top of that, he was well-adjusted socially. He had many friends in many different circles.”

Mangione reported missing before arrest

Two weeks before Thompson’s death, Mangione’s mother, Kathleen Mangione, reported his son missing to the San Francisco Police Department.

Luigi Mangione’s family had not been in contact with him for six months, officials said. He also reportedly went dark on social media over the summer, despite previously posting photos of his travels and documenting his reading habits on Goodreads.

Concerns grew on social media in October after Mangione suddenly stopped communicating.

One user on X tagged him, saying, “No one has heard from you in months and apparently your family is looking for you,” as well as, “I don’t know if you’re okay.”

Other X users tweeted at Mangione’s, with one mentioning unfulfilled commitments to help with their wedding and another expressing support, saying, “Know you are missed and loved,” according to multiple outlets.

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