Police in Pennsylvania arrested a “strong individual” on Monday in connection with last week’s fatal shooting of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson outside a New York City hotel, officials said.
Officials identified the man as 26-year-old Luigi Nicholas Mangione. He was born in Maryland and his last known hometown was Honolulu. He was arrested on firearms charges and taken for questioning in connection with Thompson’s death. He has not been charged with Thompson’s murder at this time.
“We have a strong interest in the shooting that rocked our city last week,” New York Mayor Eric Adams said at a press conference on Monday. “United Healthcare CEO Brian Thompson was the victim of a senseless act of violence. “
Earlier Monday, authorities in Altoona, Pennsylvania, questioned a man in part because he was found with a gun similar to the one used in the shooting, NBC News reported, citing two sources familiar with the case. Altoona is located about 300 miles west of New York City and about 100 miles east of Pittsburgh.
The man was spotted by people at a local McDonald’s and police were called to investigate, three senior officials told NBC News.
When police arrived, they noticed the man had a fake New Jersey ID and was taken in for questioning, two senior officials told NBC News. At the police station, investigators discovered the man had a gun similar to the one used in Thompson’s killing, officials said.
Officials said it appears the weapon is a “ghost gun” made by a 3D printer. Police also recovered a handwritten document from the person in question that speaks to a possible motivation and mindset for the shooting, officials said.
Thompson, 50, was shot dead outside a Hilton hotel in Manhattan on Wednesday. He was due to speak at the health insurer’s annual investor conference at the hotel that day, but was killed in what police say was a targeted attack. In the days after the shooting, a huge manhunt followed.
Police had not identified the shooter before his arrest or confirmed a possible motive.
Investigators found shell casings with the words “deny,” “defend” and “depose” written on them at the scene of the shooting last week. Those words are also similar to those in the title of a 2010 book about insurance, although police said at the time there was no known connection.
Over the weekend, investigators found a backpack in New York City’s Central Park that may belong to the gunman, a senior official told NBC News. Three sources familiar with the investigation said the backpack contained only a jacket, and two sources said some Monopoly money was found inside.
Police believe the gunman arrived in New York City last month on a bus leaving from Atlanta.
This is a development story. Check back for updates.
This article was originally published on MSNBC.com
