Luigi Mangione latest: Top New York attorney tapped by CEO murder suspect as ‘defense fund’ donations mount

Luigi Mangione’s potential motives in connection to the murder of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson remain unclear, police say.

There is “no indication” that the shooting suspect, who is believed to have undergone back surgery last year, was ever a client of UnitedHealthcare, according to the NYPD’s Chief of Detectives Joseph Kenny.

He said that the findings don’t appear to indicate that Mangione had a grudge against Thompson, who was gunned down in Midtown Manhattan on December 4, but targeted the company for its size and because he had prior knowledge of a conference taking place.

“We have no indication that he ever was a client of UnitedHealthcare, but he does make mention that it is the fifth largest corporation in America, which would make it the largest healthcare organization in America,” he told NBC New York.

A 42-year-old Florida woman was arrested Tuesday after allegedly threatening a health insurance worker over the phone by using the same words that were found on the bullets used to fatally shoot UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson last week.

“Delay, deny, depose. You people are next.” Briana Boston of Lakeland allegedly told a BlueCross BlueShield employee at the end of a call about a recently denied medical insurance claim.

Those same words were found scrawled on three bullet casings at the scene of Thompson’s murder. Police believe they are a reference to “Delay, Deny, Defend” – which is the name of a book attacking insurance companies, and a phrase used to describe how insurance companies delay payments, deny claims and defend their actions.

Because of the recent fatal shooting of Thomspon, the employee perceived the words as a threat and called FBI officials, said officials.

Ariana Baio has the full story.

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Luigi Mangione supporters have donated tens of thousands of dollars to “defense funds” set up for him after he was arrested on suspicion of murdering UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson.

The anonymous fund “December 4th Legal Committee” surpassed more than $100,000 in donations on the crowdfunding website GiveSendGo by Sunday morning.

The group’s name is an apparent reference to the day the 26-year-old allegedly gunned down the healthcare executive on a busy Manhattan street.

My colleague Alexander Butler reports:

The man accused of killing UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson in a brazen shooting on a busy Manhattan street has been charged with murder in the second degree.

Luigi Mangione, 26, was arrested with a 3D-printed gun in a McDonald’s in Altoona, Pennsylvania, on Monday morning following a six-day manhunt for the hooded shooter who gunned down the healthcare executive on a Manhattan street.

The gun matches three shell casings found at the crime scene and marked with “deny,” “defend” and “depose”, police officials said this week.

My colleague crime correspondent Amy-Clare Martin reports:

The boss of UnitedHealthcare’s parent company has paid tribute to the “brilliant, kind man” Brian Thompson, days after he was gunned down outside his New York hotel.

Andrew Witty, CEO of UnitedHealth Group, wrote in a New York Times op-ed on Friday: “As Brian Thompson’s family, friends and colleagues mourn his killing, we are bearing a grief and sadness we will carry for the rest of our lives. Grief for the family he leaves behind. And grief for a brilliant, kind man who was working to make health care better for everyone.”

The chief of UnitedHealthcare’s parent company has acknowledged the public’s “frustrations” with the US’s health care system, which he admitted is flawed.

Andrew Witty, CEO of UnitedHealth Group, wrote in a New York Times op-ed on Friday: “We know the health system does not work as well as it should, and we understand people’s frustrations with it.”

His remarks come days after UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson was shot dead in an attack that was allegedly fuelled by hatred of the system.

Paying tribute to Mr Thompson as a “brilliant, kind man”, Mr Witty also pledged his company would help to fix the issues. “We are willing to partner with anyone, as we always have — health care providers, employers, patients, pharmaceutical companies, governments and others — to find ways to deliver high-quality care and lower costs,” he said.

The suspect in the shooting is being held in his own cell under maximum security at Huntingdon Correctional Facility in Pennsylvania.

Luigi Mangione is not under suicide watch or in solitary confinement, according to CBS News. However, he does not get to interact with other inmates.

Mangione has not been violent while in jail, according to officials.

He is being held in a Pennsylvania jail pending his extradition to New York to face murder charges in connection to the killing of United Healthcare CEO Brian Thompson.