Luigi Mangione has a bleak start to the year 2025 in a small cell in a notorious rat-infested prison, where he is allegedly forced to choose between showering and exercising.
The accused killer of United Healthcare CEO Brian Thompson remains detained at New York's Metropolitan Detention Center in Brooklyn.
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He is currently being held in solitary confinement within the Special Housing Unit, known as SHU, and is not yet allowed to socialize with other inmates, including P Diddy, who is awaiting trial on sex trafficking charges.
Mangione Faces Separate indictments Related to the December 4 shooting downtown Manhattan and could still spend months in a Brooklyn prison.
It is plagued by prisoner death and violence, rodents, raw sewage, staff shortages, and crumbling infrastructure.
Sam Mangel, a prison consultant who has clients at the Metropolitan Detention Center, spoke exclusively to the U.S. Sun about Mangione's prison conditions.
“You're in a six-by-nine cell with two beds or a bunk, a one-piece toilet and sink, a small desk, and maybe a small foot locker,” he said.
“There may or may not be a window, and you're locked in there 23 out of 24 hours.
“Your meals are served to you through a slot in the door.
“If you are undergoing a psychiatric evaluation, you will be monitored every 15 to 30 minutes to make sure you are not harming yourself.
The only time you are not restrained is when you are physically restrained in the bathroom.”
Prison consultant Sam Mangel
“Depending on the severity of the evaluation, and I don't know if he is currently undergoing that evaluation, he will be placed in a suicide garb, which is what I saw him in when he was arrested in Pennsylvania.
“You're allowed out for one hour a day, and usually one hour a day for three days a week, because we're so understaffed… You have a choice, you can shower, you can shower. A phone call, or you can come in, usually Be 10 x 10 or 15 x 15, fenced off the area yourself.
“They might give you a basketball to jump, but that's it.
“So you literally have a choice. Do you want to take a shower? But you're shackled the whole time.”
“The only time you're not restrained is when you're physically restrained in the bathroom. And then when you get out, you turn around and they put you back in restraints.”
Mangione, who has pleaded not guilty, will likely suffer mentally as the reality of his situation will now sink in after weeks behind bars, Mangel said.
“You never get used to it,” he said. “You're there with other people from psychiatry, people coming back from terrible drug withdrawal, and they're knocking on doors at all hours of the night.”
Prisoners often wrap their clothes around their heads while sleeping because they don't have access to a pillow, Mangel said.
He continued: “It is very loud. People are trying to communicate with other prisoners at all times.
“Because there's no clock, you don't necessarily know, other than when you're eating, what time of day it is.
Timeline of Brian Thompson's murder
Brian Thompson, the 50-year-old CEO of UnitedHealthcare, was shot to death in Manhattan in an execution-style killing.
Here's everything we know about Thompson's murder so far.
Monday 2 December Thompson travels from his home in Minnesota to New York City to attend an investor conference in midtown Manhattan.
Wednesday, December 4, 6:45 am Thompson walks from his hotel across the street to the New York Hilton Midtown and is killed by a masked shooter. The execution was caught during surveillance, and the suspect was seen riding his bike toward Central Park. Cops launched a citywide search for the killer.
11:30 am – Cops released disturbing photos of the execution, offered a reward for information, and made a desperate plea for New Yorkers to keep their eyes out.
12:00 noon – Thompson's estranged wife, Paulette, revealed that her husband was threatened before he was shot.
2:45 pm – Cops released more chilling photos of the suspect ordering food at Starbucks that partially revealed his face. The US Sun confirmed that the café was only two blocks away from the shooting scene, but it is unclear when it stopped there.
December 5, 6 am Reports claim that the words “deny,” “dispose,” and “defend” were engraved on live ammunition and shell casings left behind by the killer. These words echo the book Delay, Deny, Defend, about the failures of the health care sector. The author of the book had no comment on the reports.
8 am– Cops raided a motel on New York City's Upper West Side where the suspect was said to have stayed. It is believed he was wearing a mask for most of the time he spent there.
11 am – A person of interest was photographed in Thompson's murder. He's wearing a hood in the photo, but his full face can be seen grinning widely. However, no arrests were made in the investigation.
afternoon – Law enforcement confirms that the suspect arrived in New York City on a Greyhound bus on November 24. It was also confirmed that the suspect dropped a mobile phone near the scene of the shooting.
December 6, 3 p.m – Police announced they believed the killer left New York City via interstate bus. They released more surveillance footage showing him taking a taxi to the George Washington Bridge bus station.
December 9 – Luigi Mangione, 26, was arrested as a “strong person of interest” at a McDonald’s restaurant in Altoona, Pennsylvania. He carried a three-page statement, false identification, and a gun similar to the one used in Thompson's murder.
“Maybe you get a Bible to read, or some reading material, but that's it. You don't have access to any other external stimuli.”
Reports have suggested that Mangione may now be able to afford an MP3 player, but Mangel insists he will not be able to use it.
“An MP3 player costs $100, but he won't be able to actually use it, other than perhaps the radio feature, because it requires charging every eight hours,” he said.
“He won't be able to access the MP3 charger while he's in that particular unit. So that won't happen. Every time he tries to download a song, he pays $1 per download.”
“He will have to have access to a computer that can access Apple Music to download the songs.”
Mangione's next court date in state court is scheduled for February 21.
Before that, he is expected to appear in federal court on January 18.
“While he is in protective custody, he will be withdrawn in my opinion,” Mangel continued.
“Reality sinks in very quickly when you're in that environment.
“Now, once he's moved into what we call the 'general population', he'll be around other prisoners who are very intelligent, and speak very well. Interacting with that level of intelligence will be very important for him once he gets there.”
Rodent infestation
Mangione was an Ivy League technical graduate from a prominent Maryland family before he disappeared and cut off contact with family and friends.
He allegedly suffered from chronic back pain and was frustrated with the American health insurance industry.
Mangel believes Mangione will be transferred this week so he can mingle with other inmates, but they often face a backlog due to staffing issues.
But living conditions when he moves to a new floor will not improve.
“I have clients there who have a rodent infestation,” Mangel said.
“At night, the men put towels under the door, because the space is only an inch…so the rats don't get in under the doors.
“Just because it's going to be on a separate floor from everyone else, they're getting the same mice, the same roaches, the same food, the same clothes, the same HVAC system, the same mattresses, the same everything.
“The only difference is their safety and the safety of others. They are separate.”
Asked if he had any advice for Maggioni, he said: “Keep your head down. You're just a number where you are.”
“Listen to what some of the other prisoners are telling you.
“Don't try to be a big fish in a small pond, because all you'll do is draw attention to yourself. And that's the last thing you want to do today, and tomorrow, depending on what happens in the future.
“I tell clients, be like the upholstered flower, listen, and pay attention to your environment. Don't stand out.”
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