ALTOONA, Pa. (AP) 鈥� The gun found on the man charged with killing matched shell casings found at the site of the shooting, New York City鈥檚 police commissioner said Wednesday as authorities scrutinized evidence and the suspect's experiences with the victim's industry.
鈥檚 fingerprints also matched a water bottle and a snack bar wrapper that police found near the scene in midtown Manhattan, Commissioner Jessica Tisch said at an unrelated news conference. Police had said earlier that they believed the gunman bought the items at a nearby coffee shop while awaiting his target.
Mangione, 26, remained jailed without bail Wednesday in Pennsylvania, where he was arrested and initially charged with gun and forgery offenses. Manhattan prosecutors were working to bring him to New York to face a in the death of , the leader of the United States鈥� biggest health insurer.
Mangione's lawyer has cautioned the public against prejudging the case.
While the case is in early stages, police believe the suspect may have been motivated by animus toward the health care industry.
Investigators are looking into an accident that injured Mangione鈥檚 back and sent him to an emergency room on July 4, 2023, police said Wednesday. They鈥檙e scrutinizing his Facebook page, where he posted X-rays of numerous screws that were inserted into his spine. And police are studying his writings about the injury and his disdain for corporate America and .
Authorities recovered a spiral notebook that Mangione kept, along with a three-page, handwritten letter found when he was arrested Monday in Pennsylvania, a law enforcement official said Wednesday. Police have not disclosed what was in the notebook.
The letter teased the possibility that clues to the attack 鈥� 鈥渟ome straggling notes and To Do lists that illuminate the gist of it鈥� 鈥� could be found in the notebook, the law enforcement official said. The official wasn鈥檛 authorized to disclose information about the investigation and spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity.
A law enforcement bulletin obtained by the AP earlier this week said the letter disdained corporate greed and what Mangione called 鈥減arasitic鈥� health insurance companies. The prep school and Ivy League graduate wrote that the U.S. has the most expensive health care system in the world and that major corporations' profits continue to rise while life expectancy doesn't, according to the bulletin.
In his first public words since his arrest, about an 鈥渋nsult to the intelligence of the American people鈥� on his way into court Tuesday.
At a brief hearing, defense lawyer Thomas Dickey said that he didn't believe there was evidence to support a forgery charge and questioned whether the gun allegation amounts to a crime. Dickey also said Mangione would contest his extradition to New York and wanted a hearing on the issue.
鈥淵ou can鈥檛 rush to judgment in this case or any case,鈥� Dickey said afterward. 鈥淗e鈥檚 presumed innocent. Let鈥檚 not forget that.鈥�
Mangione was arrested in Altoona, about 230 miles (about 370 kilometers) west of New York City, after a McDonald鈥檚 customer recognized him and notified an employee, authorities said.
New York police officials have said Mangione was carrying and the same fake ID the suspected shooter had used to check into a New York hostel, along with a passport and other fraudulent IDs.
Thompson, 50, was killed Dec. 4 as he walked alone to a Manhattan hotel for an investor conference.
There were no fingerprints on the ammunition found at the shooting scene, but work is ongoing to analyze a print on cellphone left nearby, police said Wednesday.
Police are continuing to search for more surveillance video showing Mangione's movements in New York between Nov. 24, when they say he arrived in the city, and the shooting. From video collected already, investigators determined the suspect quickly fled the city, likely by bus, after the killing.
His movements afterward are unclear, but authorities believe he took steps to stay off the radar. Prosecutors said at Mangione's Pennsylvania hearing this week that when arrested, he had what are known as Faraday bags for his cellphone and laptop to block signals authorities can use to track electronic devices.
Mangione, a grandson of a well-known Maryland real estate developer and philanthropist, had a graduate degree in computer science and worked for a time at a car-buying website. During the first half of 2022, he bunked at a co-living space in Hawaii, where those who knew him said he suffered from severe and sometimes debilitating back pain.
His relatives have said in a statement that they are 鈥渟hocked and devastated" at his arrest.
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Sisak reported from New York. Associated Press writer Jennifer Peltz contributed.
Michael R. Sisak And Mark Scolforo, The Associated Press
