The former Ivy Leaguer accused of murdering United Healthcare CEO Brian Thompson played a video game with other college students in which they pretended to be assassins.
Luigi Mangione was a member of a Discord group at the University of Pennsylvania that played Among Us, which is based on the party game Mafia and involves gamers trying to work out who is the secret killer lurking among them.
Former UPenn student Alejandro Romero, who was part of the group, told NBC News that he was shocked to learn of 26-year-old Mangione’s arrest at a McDonald’s restaurant in Altoona, Pa, on Monday.
“I just found it extremely ironic that, you know, we were in this game and there could actually be a true killer among us,” said Romero. “As soon as his photo and name popped up on X, my friend texted me asking if I knew him, and then either I was calling some 10 friends or they were calling me.
“I didn’t speak to anybody today who wasn’t already aware of what had happened,” he added.
The Discord group broke up after their final year at college was cut short by the pandemic and students started full-time jobs or went traveling.
Romero hadn’t spoken to Mangione since 2020, but he said: “He just fit a mold. He just seemed like any other normal frat dude that you could see at a frat party.
“I feel like people are unsure how to label him. I’m personally struggling to understand how this all fits.”
Mangione was charged in New York with murder, possession of a loaded firearm, possession of a forged instrument and criminal possession of a weapon, according to court documents.
In a statement posted online by the suspect’s family, Nino Mangione, a GOP member of the Maryland House of Delegates, said they were “shocked and devastated” at the arrest, adding: “We offer our prayers to the family of Brian Thompson and we ask people to pray for all involved.”
