Inmate number 52503-511 at Brooklyn’s Metropolitan Detention Center is no ordinary prisoner.
Luigi Mangione is a 27-year-old Ivy League graduate and heir of a prominent, philanthropic Maryland family.
He is an alleged assassin accused of executing father-of-two and UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson in a brazen shooting in the heart of Manhattan.
And he is a wildly polarizing figure who has controversially divided and captivated the nation through his shocking alleged crime.
In the city where the victim was gunned down, diehard fans – many of them female – have been flocking to every court appearance, waving posters and sporting Super Mario Bros ‘Luigi’ hats.
Over on the West Coast, a bizarre musical about the case – featuring cameos from the characters Diddy and Sam Bankman-Fried – sold out weeks before opening night in June.
And all across the globe, thousands of followers have been donating their last dimes to boost his legal fund.
State and federal prosecutors allege Mangione is a cold-blooded killer who plotted for months to ‘wack’ the boss of an insurance giant to fulfill his ‘political and ideological’ motives.
Luigi Mangione (in court in February) is now known as inmate number 52503-511 at Brooklyn’s Metropolitan Detention Center
Luigi Mangione’s bombshell diary entries reveal how he allegedly meticulously planned the alleged assassination of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson
The notorious Metropolitan Detention Center (MDC) in Brooklyn where Luigi Mangione is behind held
But, to his legion of supporters, he is something of a cult hero, who shone a spotlight on systemic issues within the healthcare and insurance industry – and took on corporate greed.
Chilling diary entries vs traveling escapades
Diary entries and new accounts from traveling buddies have now shed further light on the contradictory figure that is Luigi Mangione – on the one hand, thinking how he could better the crimes of Unabomber Ted Kaczynski, while on the other regaling tales of bizarre encounters with ‘ladyboys’ in Thailand.
In a red notebook diary found in the 27-year-old‘s possession when he was arrested at a McDonald’s in Altoona, Pennsylvania, in December 2024 murder, Mangione appeared to be meticulously planning the CEO’s murder.
‘I finally feel confident about what I will do. The details are coming together. And I don’t feel any doubt about whether it’s right/justified,’ a journal entry from August 2024 read, according to prosecution court documents.
‘I’m glad-in a way-that I’ve procrastinated bc [sic] it allowed me to learn more about UHC [UnitedHealthcare].’
The same diary entry appeared to suggest Mangione had previously considered a different target – detailed as ‘KMD’ – before deciding upon UnitedHealthcare, and its CEO.
In another entry, he mused about what the Unabomber got wrong during his own reign of terror between 1978 and 1995, according to the filings.
While Kaczynski ‘makes some good points on the future of humanity,’ Mangione mused that ‘he indiscriminately mailbombs innocents.’
In one rambling diary entry, Mangione goes on to refer to those in the healthcare industry as ‘parasites’ and ‘mafioso’
In another scrawling handwritten note shared in the new court filing, Mangione apologizes to the federal agents hunting for him
‘Normies characterize him as an insane serial killer, focus on the act/atrocities themselves and dismiss his ideas,’ he writes.
Because of his ‘indiscriminate atrocities,’ Kaczynski ‘becomes a monster, which makes his ideas those of a monster, no matter how true.’
‘So say you want to rebel against the deadly, greed-fueled health insurance cartel. Do you bomb the HQ? No. Bombs=terrorism,’ the note read.
Instead, Mangione allegedly detailed his own plans to ‘wack’ the CEO of the healthcare giant at the company’s ‘parasitic bean-counter convention’ as it ‘doesn’t risk innocents.’
It all appears a far cry from the young man that several travelers encountered during Mangione’s whirlwind backpacking trip around Asia earlier that year.
To them, Mangione was a typical traveler having fun exploring new destinations and broadening his horizons.
Soccer player Christian Sacchini and an unnamed friend, who befriended Mangione that spring, told the New York Times how Mangione stayed in contact and regaled them with wild traveling tales.
The friend described how Mangione sent a WhatsApp in March 2024 telling them he had been ‘beaten up by seven ladyboys’ and lost his phone in a taxi.
He even sent a photo of his scratched arm from the encounter.
In another message, Mangione joked that he had tried to pay for a sex worker using ‘pornstar pokemon’ cards instead of Japanese yen while he was in Osaka.
The alleged would-be assassin had met the two men in Thailand and considered traveling with them to Vietnam.
But he ended up going to Japan instead.
Two American travelers recently revealed in an interview with the New York Times that they met Mangione when they were in Bangkok. The city’s red light district is pictured
Mangione reportedly had an encounter with seven ‘ladyboys’ while traveling in Thailand
After some wild escapades, he told them he was ready to ‘zen out’, ‘meditate’ and ‘do some writing’.
That writing, based on court documents, was far from ‘zen’ – instead providing a plan and a countdown to December’s alleged assassination.
Famous friends on the inside
While Mangione continues to be something of an enigma and divide opinions in the outside world, inside the walls of the notorious Metropolitan Detention Center in Brooklyn, he is a normal prisoner settling into mundane prison life – except for the addition of a few famous friends and a constant stream of fan mail.
Mangione is far from the only famous face to call New York City’s only federal prison home.
Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs is currently being held at MDC after being sentenced to four years for transportation to engage in prostitution.
Disgraced crypto bro Sam Bankman-Fried also overlapped with Mangione at the facility before he was moved to a low-security prison in California to serve his 25-year sentence for carrying out one of America’s biggest ever financial fraud schemes.
Other notorious inmates over the years have included Jeffrey Epstein’s right-hand woman Ghislaine Maxwell, R&B star turned sex trafficker R. Kelly and Pharma Bro Martin Shkreli.
MDC, which BOP data shows currently houses 1,074 male and female inmates, has an infamous reputation for dirty, dangerous conditions where violence and drug smuggling are rife.
Complaints about rat infestations and broken toilets have also long plagued the penitentiary, as well as overcrowding and understaffing.
In July 2024, an inmate died in a fight inside the facility, with his attorney calling him a victim of the ‘hell on earth’ Brooklyn prison. His death came one month after another inmate was stabbed to death by another inmate.
Diddy (left) is locked up at MDC while disgraced crypto bro Sam Bankman-Fried (right) also overlapped with Luigi Mangione at the facility
In 2019, the prison descended into a ‘humanitarian crisis’ when a power outage left inmates in the dark and in freezing conditions while the city plunged to as low as 3 degrees Fahrenheit.
Getting his hands dirty
Despite MDC’s reputation – and Mangione’s overnight infamy – the suspected murderer appears to have settled into life inside the four walls.
After a brief stint in solitary confinement on his arrival, the high-profile prisoner is being held in general population with most other pre-trial detainees.
And, according to insiders, he hasn’t been afraid of getting his hands dirty – quite literally.
Mangione is what fellow inmates call a ‘collie’ – someone who has a prison job – with his specific role reportedly cleaning the showers and toilets at the lockup.
Federal prison consultant Sam Mangel, who represented Mangione’s former cellmate, told People that he has been given the job of an orderly, mainly consisting of cleaning toilets. Mangione has ‘well adjusted’ to inmate life, he added.
Ex-inmate Michael Daddea said in a now-removed video posted on X this month that Mangione’s job was to clean the lockup’s showers when he ended up on the same unit, 4G, as him back in March.
Daddea spoke highly of the 27-year-old inmate, describing how he welcomed him as soon as he arrived.
Ex-inmate Michael Daddea said Mangione’s job was to clean the lockup’s showers
Surveillance footage captures the moment a masked killer shot Brian Thompson dead
‘I look out the cell, Luigi is standing there and he’s like, ‘Hey, how’s it going?’ Like, super nice. Introduced himself to me first thing. I’ve literally – I’ve been in the unit for 10 minutes,’ he said, according to The New York Post.
‘I go up and I go to shake Luigi’s hand, I’m like, ‘Yo, it’s an honor to meet you.’ . . . He turns around and he goes to me, ‘You two are the first kids that came in here who knew who I was or even cared about it.’’
Daddea said they quickly became fast friends during his two-day stint before his release on bail, eating every meal together and attending Ash Wednesday church service together.
When he isn’t working, Mangione is said to spend his time searching for news articles about himself and meeting with his lawyers as he prepares for both his state and federal trials.
‘Luigi gets the NewYork newspaper everyday… he would have me help look through some to see if there’s articles about him,’ Daddea wrote on X.
A ‘model prisoner’
Mangione’s attorneys also referred to Mangione’s prison job to support their claims he has been nothing but a ‘model prisoner’ behind bars at MDC.
In a June 3 court filing, attorney Karen Friedman Agnifilo asked the judge to allow Mangione to appear without shackles and a bulletproof vest in upcoming court hearings, arguing his current attire pushes a ‘false narrative’ that he is an ‘unusual danger requiring extraordinary security measures.’
Instead, she argued that during the 167 days behind bars to that point he has ‘not been a security or flight risk’ or required different treatment to any other inmate.
Luigi Mangione wears shackles as he appears in Manhattan Supreme Court in February
Luigi Mangione is perp-walked by a string of law enforcement agents following his arrest in December
‘He has never been cited by officers for misconduct, nor has he ever been punished or restricted; he has not exhibited any uncooperative behavior and has not been placed in any specially restricted location such as the Special Housing Unit ( also known as “the SHU”).
‘In fact, he has been assigned to a work detail and is in the general population,’ she wrote.
The visitor list
Most days – in between cleaning and reading the news – Mangione is visited by his legal team who join him inside MDC’s large common visitor room.
The suspected killer appears to be taking a keen interest in his defense while behind bars, with his attorneys requesting a laptop back in March so that he can review case materials.
But, while receiving regular visits from his lawyers, it’s unclear if he has had any personal visitors, such as from his prominent Baltimore family.
To date, Mangione’s family members have been absent from his court hearings and have stayed largely silent since his shock arrest.
Daily Mail has contacted the BOP and Mangione’s legal team.
In a short statement in December, the family said: ‘Our family is shocked and devastated by Luigi’s arrest. We offer our prayers to the family of Brian Thompson and we ask people to pray for all involved.’
Fan mail and funds
Even without visits from his family, Mangione doesn’t appear to be lonely inside MDC as he is inundated with support from fans across the globe.
Such is the fandom that Mangione’s defense created a website dedicated to his case, sharing updates on the legal proceedings – as well as messages from the man himself.
Supporters of accused assassin Luigi Mangione gather outside federal court in Manhattan in April
Fans of the man accused of shooting dead health insurance exec Brian Thompson are seen outside court in February
‘I am overwhelmed by – and grateful for – everyone who has written me to share their stories and express their support. Powerfully, this support has transcended political, racial, and even class divisions, as mail has flooded MDC from across the country, and around the globe,’ he wrote in a message shared on the site in February.
‘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.’
Mangione receives up to 115 letters every day, his attorneys said, with hordes of fan mail, books and photos flooding in to the 8 by 10 foot cell he calls home.
Mangione is facing such an outpouring of support that he has asked fans to temporarily stop sending books because he can only access a limited number at a time.
He also requested that those writing to him send no more than five photos at a time, with the sheer volume of photos being sent meaning they are taking longer than usual to be screened by BOP staff and shared with him.
Mangione’s doting fans are also helping fund his legal battles with more than 28,000 contributors donating more than $1.15 million.
The crowdfunding campaign surpassed the $1 million threshold on Mangione’s 27th birthday on May 6, as his army of fans led a drive to donate $27 ‘as a way to celebrate’ the milestone.
‘27 things I’m grateful for’
Inside the federal lockup, Mangione marked his first birthday behind bars by compiling a list of ‘27 Things I’m Grateful For’ that he sent to some of his loyal followers.
Mangione marked his first birthday behind bars by compiling a list of ‘27 Things I’m Grateful For’
Mangione’s gratitude list also included ‘Chicken Thursdays and Sweet Baby Ray’s bbq sauce’
In the letter, circulating online, he wrote that the influx of letters is ‘creating a bizarre and disorienting Groundhog Day scenario where every day is both Christmas and my May 6th birthday.’
Mangione said he is ‘incredibly grateful’ for the communication from fans, saying ‘the monotony of my physical environment is offset by the variety and richness of the lives I experience through letters.’
As well as the letters, Mangione’s list of things includes his family, friends, ‘lucky long sleeve,’ the MDC mailroom, memes, books and the BOP music catalog from which he reveals he is currently listening to ‘Television: The Drug of the Nation’ by the Disposable Heroes of Hiphoprisy.
He also revealed that the MDC staff and correctional officers ‘are nothing like what ‘The Shawshank Redemption’ or ‘The Stanford Prison Experiment’ had me to believe’ and spoke of his new prison pal, his cellmate J, who he shares his so-called ‘birdcage’ with and who ‘tolerates the clutter of all my papers, shares his unique wisdom, and doesn’t hesitate to humble me when I need it.’
Mangione’s gratitude list also offers insight into his lockup diet, as he reveals his gratitude for ‘Chicken Thursdays and Sweet Baby Ray’s bbq sauce’ as well as how he is using donations to his commissary account to buy ‘a tablet, songs, stamps, hygiene items, bbq sauce, Goya sazon, peanut butter, and lots of tuna packets.’
