Luigi Mangione, the 26-year-old suspect of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson’s homicide, has been charged with murder after he was arrested in Altoona, Pennsylvania. His arrest followed an intimation from a McDonald’s employee in Pennsylvania who was not named by the police.
After Thompson was fatally shot on December 4, 2024, authorities circulated a photo of Luigi Mangione, listing him as a person of interest. However, after the news of his arrest went viral, an X post from Burger King circulated on the internet that read,
“We don’t snitch.”
A screenshot of the post was also reshared by the X account ‘Mike Beauvais,’ who wrote that Luigi Mangione should not have gone to McDonald’s. The underlying meaning of the Burger King's X post is that, unlike McDonald’s, Burger King does not tell on people.
Given the controversial nature of the X post, it must be noted that the post is fake and it was not shared by Burger King’s official X handle.
BK’s official X account showed no presence of any such post that shaded McDonald’s in the context of Brian Thompson’s murder. Furthermore, according to Snopes, the users who reshared or liked the post were not found.
On careful observation, Burger King’s post mentions ‘Retweets’ and ‘Quote Tweets,’ terms that have become obsolete after Elon Musk’s takeover. Instead, the social media platform uses terms like ‘Repost’ and ‘Quote.’ As the screenshot showed the previously used terms, it can be argued that the post is fake and Burger King did not make any such claims.
Why are netizens unhappy over Luigi Mangione’s arrest?
Reportedly, Luigi Mangione is an alumnus of The University of Pennsylvania, and he identifies as an anti-capitalist. He was unhappy over how the medical industry ill-treated his sick relatives. Despite his arrest, netizens appeared to support him, and the hashtag movement #FreeLuigi has been brewing on social media.
Many even criticized the McDonald’s worker for telling on Mangione, saying they have poor health insurance that the food giant provided to its underpaid employees.
“I find some of Luigi Mangione's posts very interesting. He is clearly a highly intelligent young man, frequently writing about topics such as Western civilization, declining birth rates, the impact of social media on mental health, and philosophy. What could drive someone with such intelligence and a promising future to throw it all away?” the person wrote.
Other X users compared Luigi Mangione to Nelson Mandela saying both used violence for the greater good. Many even criticized the McDonald’s worker for telling on Mangione.
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Besides ideology, many took part in the hashtag movement because of his looks, as netizens said he was too ‘hot’ for prison.
Upon his arrest, Mangione was found in possession of three weapons. He reportedly comes from a well-to-do family with a cousin who works in the state legislature. His friends were shocked to hear the news, and many have even expressed disbelief, even though Mangione was not in touch with many of his friends in the past few years.
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