UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson, who was gunned down on the streets of Manhattan last week, was buried in his hometown on Monday – the same day his alleged killer Luigi Mangione was arrested.
Thompson’s loved ones gathered for a private funeral at a Lutheran church in Maple Grove, Minnesota The New York Times.
His family noted that Thompson played many roles – as husband, brother and friend – but above all, he was a “devoted father” to his two sons.
“Brian was an incredibly loving husband, son, brother and friend. Most importantly, Brian was a devoted father to our two sons, and we will miss him for the rest of our lives,” his family said.
“We appreciate the overwhelming outpouring of kind words and support we have received.”
Thompson was shot and killed early Wednesday morning while on his way to an investor conference.
Chilling surveillance footage captured the moment his masked killer opened fire on him with a large pistol fitted with a silencer outside the Hilton Hotel in Manhattan.
The NYPD searched for his killer for days until Mangione, 26, was arrested Monday at a McDonalds in Altoona, Pennsylvania, and identified as the CEO’s alleged killer.
Brian Thompson, 50, was buried Monday during a private funeral in his hometown of Maple Grove, Minnesota.
His family noted that Thompson played many roles – as husband, brother and friend – but above all, he was a “devoted father” to his two sons. (Image: Thompson’s wife Paulette and their two sons)
The 50-year-old was shot around 6:45 a.m. in Midtown, hours before New Yorkers gathered nearby for the annual Rockefeller Center Christmas tree lighting.
The father-of-two was fatally shot in the chest and leg in the targeted attack, with the killer fleeing on an electric bicycle.
Witnesses said the suspected gunman was waiting outside the hotel before the shooting, and that he knew which door Thompson would be coming out of before shooting him at close range.
Footage after the fatal shooting showed NYPD officers performing CPR on the married father before he was taken in critical condition to Mount Sinai Hospital, where he was pronounced dead.
Mangione, who comes from a wealthy Maryland family, has since been charged with manslaughter.
He was found in the fast food restaurant after both a worker and an elderly person spotted him and called the police.
The NYPD searched for his killer for days, until Monday when Luigi Mangione, 26, was arrested at a McDonalds in Altoona, Pennsylvania and identified as the CEO’s alleged killer.
The Ivy League student was found with a 3D printed gun and a black silencer. Police said the gun was loaded with one Glock magazine with six 9mm all-metal jacketed bullets.
He made his first court appearance after being charged with murder on Tuesday. He pouted as he was escorted out of the hearing after undergoing an intense public meltdown hours earlier.
The orange jumpsuit-clad suspect had to be restrained as he yelled at police as he headed to court in Altoona.
Thomas Dickey, Mangione’s attorney, said Tuesday night that his client will also plead not guilty to the gun possession charges he faces in Pennsylvania.
Dickey also told reporters that he hopes to represent Mangione in New York, and indicated that he expects to plead not guilty.
He also said he has not seen “any evidence” that Mangione is the shooter.
He was found in the fast food restaurant after both a worker and an elderly person spotted him and called the police
He made his first court appearance after being charged with murder on Tuesday. He pouted as he was escorted out of the hearing after undergoing an intense public meltdown hours earlier.
Dickey said, “I haven’t seen any evidence that says he’s the shooter. The fundamental concept of American justice is a presumption of innocence until proven guilty.
“I’ve seen zero evidence at this point. But that (pleading not guilty in New York) would be my expectation. That would certainly be my advice.’
It has since been claimed that he had a manifesto against United Healthcare after suffering a debilitating back injury that required painful spine surgery.
In it, Mangione condemned the American health care system, and apparently also had a spiral notebook in which Mangione wrote a “to-do list.” CNN reports this.
He also reportedly ruled out the prospect of using a bomb to kill Thompson because it “might kill innocents,” and determined that a shooting would be more targeted.
He also reportedly mused about the prospect of killing Thompson “at his own bean-counting conference,” as the insurance company’s CEO was about to announce the financial gains the company had made this year.
Authorities also noted that Mangione also published a three-page manifesto, which they called a “claim of responsibility.”
He wrote about the grandiose size of UnitedHealthcare and how much profit it makes, and then condemned health insurers more broadly for putting profit before care.
After his death, it was revealed that he and his wife had divorced and lived in separate houses less than a mile apart
‘To spare you a lengthy investigation, I clearly state that I have not collaborated with anyone. This was pretty trivial: some basic social engineering, basic CAD, (and) a lot of patience,” Mangione reportedly wrote in the manifesto, according to the Daily beast.
He went on to say he had “respect” for federal investigators and apologized for causing any “trauma” but appeared to defend his alleged actions.
“To be honest, these parasites already expected it,” the manifesto wrote.
Before becoming CEO of the largest healthcare company in the US, Thompson grew up in Jewell, Iowa, in a working-class family.
“He was just a farm boy living in rural Iowa,” a close friend told the NYT. “Everyone got along with him and he got along with everyone else.
“He was just a great, silly, funny, smart guy to be around during the years I knew him,” they added.
Thompson was the valedictorian of his senior class at South Hamilton High School in 1993.
He then attended the University of Iowa, where he graduated in 1997 with a degree in business administration and accounting.
His wife, Paulette Reveiz, also attended college, while the couple raised their two sons in the Minneapolis suburb of Maple Grove.
After his death, it was revealed that he and his wife had divorced and lived in separate houses less than a mile apart. Wall Street Journal reported.
Thompson bought the $1 million home near his childhood home in 2018, according to public records, with neighbors telling the Journal he spent much of his time traveling.
His wife Paulette, a practicing physiotherapist, revealed that her husband had previously received threats. She referred to a “lack of coverage.” Despite the reported threats, Thompson did not travel with security.