ALTOONA, Pa. – The man accused of killing UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson was taken into custody in Pennsylvania on Monday, and the state’s governor had some choice words about the suspected murderer and those praising him.
“This suspect here is a coward, not a hero,” Gov. Josh Shapiro said condemning “vigilante justice” and the alleged deadly actions of Luigi Nicholas Mangione, who the governor says is being hailed as a hero “in some dark corners.”
Shapiro’s comments came just hours after the 6-day manhunt for the gunman in Thompson’s killing came to an end at a McDonald’s in Altoona, Pennsylvania.
“In America, we do not kill people in cold blood to resolve policy differences or express a viewpoint,” the governor said, calling the employee who tipped off police the “real hero in this story.”
Mangione is currently jailed in Pennsylvania, where he is charged with possession of an unlicensed firearm, forgery and providing false identification to police.
Inside Luigi Mangione’s ties to Philadelphia
26-year-old UPenn graduate Luigi Mangione has been charged with murder following the death of a UnitedHealthcare CEO. Here’s what we know about his ties to Philly.
The 26-year-old University of Pennsylvania graduate is also charged with murder in Manhattan for the death of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson, who was gunned down walking to a hotel in the city last week.