Democratic governor of Pennsylvania Josh Shapiro has issued a blistering verdict against the suspect accused of killing UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson in cold blood.
Shapiro denounced the suspect, 26-year-old Luigi Nicholas Mangione, in comments at a news conference Monday after Mangione was arrested at a McDonald’s in Altoona, Pennsylvania.
“The suspect here is a coward, not a hero,” Shapiro said.
The governor spoke out against “vigilant justiceand chided those who have praised Thompson’s killing “in some dark corners” of the internet.
LUIGI MANGIONE, ALLEGED KILLER OF UNITEDHEALTHCARE CEO, charged with murder in New York
A photo obtained by Fox News Digital shows murder suspect Luigi Mangione. (Obtained by Fox News Digital)
“In America, we don’t kill people in cold blood to resolve policy differences or express a point of view,” Shapiro said.
His comments came hours after a six-day manhunt for Thompson’s killer ended at a McDonald’s in Altoona.
UNITEDHEALTHCARE CEO MURDER SUSPECT ARRESTED AT PENNSYLVANIA MCDONALD’S
Gov. Josh Shapiro arrives for a news conference on the arrest of Luigi Mangione in Altoona, Pennsylvania, on Monday, December 9, 2024. (David Dee Delgado for Fox News Digital)
Mangione, a 26-year-old software developer, was taken into custody by newcomer Altoona Police Officer Tyler Frye after an employee and a customer at McDonald’s recognized the suspect from wanted posters.
When officers approached Mangione — who was wearing a mask and hat and working on a laptop in the back of the restaurant — and asked him to remove his face covering, they recognized him as the suspect who wanted to be interviewed about Thompson’s murder.
WHO IS LUIGI MANGIONE, SUSPECT IN THE MURDER OF UNITEDHEALTHCARE CEO?
Luigi Mangione was taken into custody Monday morning in Altoona, Pennsylvania, in connection with the ambush murder of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson in New York City. (Luigi Mangione/Facebook)
During that meeting, he allegedly presented a fake ID, gave a false name and “became quiet and started shaking” when asked if he had been to New York recently.
He was also said to have been in possession of writings critical of health care and a ghost gun that resembled the weapon allegedly used to kill Thompson.
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Altoona police initially took Mangione into custody on charges unrelated to Thompson’s murder: possession of a firearm without a license, providing false identification to police and forgery.
He has since been charged with murder in New York, according to online court records.
Elizabeth Pritchett of Fox News Digital contributed to this report.
