Luigi Mangione Breaks Silence to Express Gratitude to Supporters

Since his arrest on December 9, 2024 Luigi Mangione has largely remained an enigma. It’s true that the man accused of fatally shooting UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson on a midtown Manhattan street was carrying a three-page manifesto when he was arrested, but Mangione has not released any public statements of his own until Friday, when his defense team launched a bare-bones website “to provide answers to frequently asked questions, accurate information about his cases, and dispel misinformation.”

The site also presents a message from Mangione, who is currently held at Brooklyn’s infamous Metropolitan Detention Center. “I am overwhelmed by – and grateful for – everyone who has written me to share their stories and express their support,” it begins.

“Powerfully, this support has transcended political, racial, and even class divisions, as mail has flooded MDC from across the country, and around the globe. While it is impossible for me to reply to most letters, please know that I read every one that I receive. Thank you again to everyone who took the time to write. I look forward to hearing more in the future.”

Of course, it’s unlikely that that statement came directly from the desk of Luigi Mangione—given his power-packed defense team, which includes former Manhattan prosecutor Karen Friedman Agnifilo, her husband and fellow defense attorney to the stars Marc Agnifilo, and former prosecutor Jacob Kaplan, this had to be a vetted and massaged piece of prose. That said, it bears many of the hallmarks of his manifesto (which journalist Ken Klippenstein published in full), including a note of politeness at odds with the cold brutality of Mangione’s alleged act.

“I do apologize for any strife of traumas but it had to be done,” Mangione wrote in the doc arresting officers said he had on hand. “But many have illuminated the corruption and greed (e.g.: Rosenthal, Moore), decades ago and the problems simply remain. It is not an issue of awareness at this point, but clearly power games at play. Evidently I am the first to face it with such brutal honesty.”

The new website also includes a link to Mangione’s defense fund (which his attorneys note “does not give you any right or access to information or materials regarding the cases, nor will you be able to dictate how any donated monies are spent.”) It also contains a frequently asked questions page, which asks that people hold off from sending him print literature. “Due to the overwhelming generosity of members of the public, numerous books have already been mailed to Luigi. He is very appreciative, but kindly asks that people temporarily refrain from sending more books,” the site says.

“The number of books he can possess at any given time is limited,” his attorneys say, noting he’s restricted to only five books at any time, though “wardens have discretion to adjust these limits.”

According to the site, Mangione returns to court for a hearing in his 11-count New York case next Friday, then will travel to Pennsylvania on Monday, February 24 for a hearing on the five charges (primarily gun and false ID counts) he faces in that state. His next appearance in federal court (where he faces stalking and murder charges) will be on Wednesday, March 19.