Inside the disturbing link between UnitedHealthcare CEO murder and NFL shooting

Last year, UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson was murdered on the street in Manhattan. When Luigi Mangione was arrested for his murder, a notebook of his was found with this sentence: "The target is insurance” because “it checks every box.”

Federal prosecutors are now arguing that Mangione helped inspire the deadly shooting at NFL headquarters in New York City in July.

Federal filing reveals chilling connection between CEO murder and NFL shooting

In a new court filing, prosecutors said Mangione’s killing was intended to “normalize the use of violence” for political purposes, pointing to alleged gunman Shane Tamura, who opened fire inside NFL HQ on July 28, killing four people before taking his own life.

“The murder [of Thompson] was thus, by the defendant’s own admission, calculated to resonate beyond this specific victim and to generate scorn, outrage, or fear toward the health insurance sector more broadly,” prosecutors said. “Simply put, the defendant hoped to normalize the use of violence to achieve ideological or political objectives. Since the murder, certain quarters of the public -- who openly identify as acolytes of the defendant -- have increasingly begun to view violence as an acceptable, or even necessary, substitute for reasoned political disagreement.”

Tamura, who blamed football for his struggles with CTE, left writings behind that echoed Mangione’s documented efforts to frame violence as a political tool. CTE, or chronic traumatic encephalopathy, is a brain disease caused by repeated hits to the head and can only be discovered after death.

Prosecutors say this link underscores why they’re seeking the death penalty against Mangione, who has pleaded not guilty to Thompson’s murder. They argue Mangione remains dangerous by inspiring others to violence, while his defense team insists the government is withholding evidence.

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