The suspect in last week’s high-profile shooting of United Healthcare CEO Brian Thompson is related to a Republican politician.
Maryland State Delegate Antonio ‘Nino’ Mangione, 37, is the cousin of 26-year-old Luigi Mangione, who was arrested Monday at a McDonald’s in Altoona, Pennsylvania in connection with the crime.
A member of the House of Delegates since 2019, the elder Mangione has yet to address the arrest.
As word spread that Mangione had been detained, Fox News hosts Sandra Smith and Jeanine Pirro reported on the revelation in real-time.
‘Another twist in this story, this just into our newsroom, the suspect’s cousin is a Maryland State Delegate,’ Smith said on the air.
‘This is now being confirmed, the suspect’s cousin is a Maryland State Delegate, Antonio D. Mangione – goes by Nino.’
Smith proceeded to criticize the politician, asking how someone of his status had not already turned the Ivy League grad in.
‘How was it possible there wasn’t anyone, anywhere in the country who was saying, that person’s in my family, I know that guy?’ she said.
Former FBI investigator Bill Daly, joining the hosts as a guest, appeared to agree, pointing to how photos of the younger Mangione’s face were sent out across the country.
Maryland State Delegate Nino Mangione (right) is the 37-year-old cousin of 26-year-old Luigi Mangione, who was apprehended Monday in connection with the crime. The Republican has yet to issue a statement on the arrest
As word that Mangione was being held for questioning spread, Fox News hosts Sandra Smith and Jeanine Pirro reported on the revelation in real-time
Former FBI investigator Bill Daly, joining the hosts as a guest, pointed to how photos of the younger Mangione’s face were sent out across the country
‘How does anybody who is related to this person not say, I know that guy, and call the police?’ the veteran federal investigator added.
Daly, who worked for the FBI for more than a decade, said that it was ‘quite surprising that it took a McDonald’s employee in Pennsylvania to identify this person.’
The tipster made the call to cops after recognizing Mangione’s likeness from photos released by the NYPD.
‘Well, that is certainly a very relevant question,’ Pirro agreed.
‘Once a guy at McDonald’s can pick up the phone, and a relative and someone who is in a particular job – where he’s working for the government, essentially, and for the people – can’t, you know you’ve got a problem,’ she concluded.
The Mangione are currently Facebook friends and still follow each other on social media, where a trove of anti-establishment posts from the suspect have been uncovered.
On his Goodreads account, the data scientist shared a series of quotes from the ‘Unabomber’ Ted Kaczynski, along with others referencing health and sickness.
‘Imagine a society that subjects people to conditions that make them terribly unhappy then gives them the drugs to take away their unhappiness,’ read one excerpt from a Kaczynski quote on Mangione’s Goodreads page.
Smith proceeded to criticize the politician for what she viewed as an oversight, asking how someone of his status had not already turned the Ivy League grad in. The lone shot of the person of interest’s face available during the search is seen here
A member of the House of Delegates since 2019, the elder Mangione is seen here. The pair are Facebook friends and follow each other on social media
‘The concept of “mental health” in our society is defined largely by the extent to which an individual behaves in accord with the needs of the system and does so without showing signs of stress,’ read another.
Mangione, meanwhile, is being held questioned, with extradition eventually needed to bring charges against him in New York.
He was cuffed after being found with a 3D-printed gun, a handwritten manifesto, and an array of IDs on him – at least one of which matched the identification he produced at a hostel in Manhattan, cops said.
A section of his manifesto reportedly read: ‘I do apologize for any strife or trauma. But it had to be done. These parasites had it coming.’