True Crime

Luigi Mangione is now charged with the cold-blooded killing of the UnitedHealthcare CEO ... and social media is being flooded with memes hailing the suspect as a hero.

Here's the deal ... 26-year-old Mangione was apprehended Monday and hours later the Manhattan D.A. charged him with murder for the brazen December 4 fatal shooting of Brian Thompson. He's also facing charges of criminal possession of a weapon, possession of a forged instrument, and 2 counts of possession of a loaded firearm.

Mere minutes after the suspect was identified and internet sleuths found his socials ... admirers began posting Super Mario Bros. and "Sopranos" memes celebrating Mangione.

Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro is refusing to support the narrative painting Brian Thompson's suspected killer as a modern-day vigilante ... slamming the notion as the murder case continues.

The politician spoke out in a press conference Monday after Luigi Mangione, the top person of interest in the fatal shooting of the UnitedHealthcare CEO, was arrested in Pennsylvania that same day.

While addressing reporters, Shapiro made it clear Mangione was "no hero," adding ... "In America, we do not kill people in cold blood to resolve policy differences or express a viewpoint."

A person of interest in the murder of United Healthcare CEO Brian Thompson has been detained.

Law enforcement sources tell TMZ ... a man in Altoona, Pennsylvania is being held for questioning in connection with last week's shooting in New York City.

Our sources tell TMZ ... local police responded after receiving a tip that the person of interest was seen in a McDonald's.

Private security firms have been inundated with calls since the cold-blooded murder of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson ... but the high-profile case won't necessarily change how companies protect execs long-term, TMZ is told.

In the days since Thompson was shot dead on the streets of NYC ... multiple private security firms have been flooded with service inquiries and price quotes.

Ian Dahlberg, owner of Dahlcore Security Guard Services, tells TMZ ... there has been a noticeable uptick in calls -- from executes looking for private security to film studios wanting to beef up guards on the lot.

The gunman who killed UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson arrived in New York City on a bus from Atlanta ... TMZ has confirmed.

Law enforcement sources tell us the suspected shooter arrived in the Big Apple 10 days before the shooting on November 24 ... taking a Greyhound bus to the Port Authority station in Manhattan.

From there, we're told the suspect checked into a hostel.

The main suspect in the killing of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson may have possibly stayed in a hostel, but it looks like he had some money ... 'cause he had an expensive backpack with him.

The backpack appears to be an Everyday Backpack from Peak Designs ... a bag meant for serious photographers but designed for casual use as well.

According to reports, it's not a new model of the backpack ... with some saying there's a good chance the bag was purchased between 2016 and 2019.

Police say the suspect who killed UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson can't hide forever in NYC ... 'cause security cameras recorded a person believed to be the shooter riding away from the murder scene.

Check out the new video, obtained by ABC News, showing a person -- who cops say is the suspect -- riding down a Manhattan street just minutes after Thompson was shot to death early Wednesday outside a hotel.

It appears the rider's wearing a mask, riding down the street very quickly ... but, cops say this is the person they're looking for -- blending in with the rest of the concrete jungle.

The wife of slain UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson says he had received threats before his shocking assassination on the streets of NYC.

In a phone conversation with NBC News read out by the anchor ... Paulette Thompson said, "There had been some threats basically. I don't know. A lack of coverage? I don't know details. I just know that he said there were some people that had been threatening him."

Law enforcement sources tell TMZ there’s no official record of any threats being reported by Brian or any other UnitedHealthcare executives.

5:45 PM PT -- The LAPD tells TMZ ... "The City of Bloomington, Minnesota Police Department examined the drives in question and determined they contained nothing of evidentiary value. The LAPD has never listened to, or been in possession of, these drives."

2:42 PM PT -- Law enforcement sources tell TMZ ... Bloomington Police accessed the thumb drives and determined there was no confession by O.J. Simpson.

We're told ... not only was there no confession, there was no O.J. on any of them -- it was just Iroc Avelli talking to himself.

New twist in the murders of Nicole Brown Simpson and Ron Goldman ... police claim they have reason to believe they have a recording of O.J. Simpson confessing to the murders.

According to a new search warrant, obtained by TMZ, cops in Minnesota say they have a thumb drive they were told has a recording of O.J. admitting to the double murder of Nicole and Ron.

What's more, police say they've been told the recording also features O.J. implicating an unknown third party.

10:05 AM PT -- Authorities tell TMZ ... Gary Oliva is NOT actually missing. After we published our story earlier today, officials realized a clerical error had been made -- his current address had not been updated in the state's sex offender registry.

It's unclear when Oliva moved, but he's been checking in monthly ... most recently, on November 4. He is not out of compliance with parole conditions. He currently resides on the 1900 block of 29th Street in Denver, which authorities tell us is technically a "transient address."

Oliva had not been seen at his previous address for months ... 'cause he did not actually live there anymore ... and, again, did his due diligence with Denver authorities when he moved.

The convicted pedophile who claims he accidentally killed JonBenét Ramsey has gone "missing" ... TMZ has confirmed.

1:39 PM PT -- Palm Beach Gardens Police chief Dominick Pape just told reporters the incident looks like it was "a random act of violence."

"It does not appear that Boucher had any legitimate purpose for being at the golf course," Pape said.

The law enforcement official added that Boucher -- who has a lengthy history of arrests -- was also reported missing by his family less than one hour before the golf course confrontation occurred.

A Florida golfer was arrested for murder at a course on Monday ... after authorities say a witness saw him savagely beat a man with several clubs -- and then drown the guy in a nearby water hazard.

Erik and Lyle don't appear to be getting out of prison before the holidays ... because their upcoming resentencing hearing has been delayed.

The Menendez Brothers joined a status hearing Monday in Van Nuys from the San Diego area prison where they are serving a life sentence without the possibility of parole. They tried to join by video, but encountered technical issues and had to listen in over the phone ... but never spoke.

Still, it was their first time in court in decades.

The Menendez Brothers are taking their first big step toward possibly getting out of prison ... and their family is feeling good about their chances ahead of Monday's hearing.

We caught up with Bryan Freedman, the attorney representing Erik and Lyle's family, this morning outside the Van Nuys Courthouse, where he expressed optimism regarding their case ... teasing "some developments" are likely to come through after the controversial siblings appear, by Zoom, in court.

Watch the video, Freedman made it clear he was "feeling good," confidently predicting "success" for Erik and Lyle in their bid for release.

Susan Smith may've given a tearful plea before being denied parole this week, but many are left unconvinced she's completely changed her ways ... including yet another one of her former prison guards who knew her well behind bars.

Felicia Mungo, a former guard at Camille Graham Correctional Center in South Carolina, tells TMZ ... she isn't sold on Susan's tears, explaining to us that she felt the weeping during the hearing was a bit "disingenuous."

For those unfamiliar, Susan was arrested in 1994 after strapping her sons -- Michael, who was 3 years old,  and Alex, who was 14 months old -- into their car seats before pushing their vehicle into a nearby lake. She was convicted in 1995 and sentenced to life with the possibility of parole ... which she was first eligible for this week.

There's at least one household in America that won't tune in to the new JonBenét Ramsey Netflix documentary ... the folks who live in the home where she was found murdered.

Carol Schuller Milner and her husband, Timothy Milner, own the Boulder, Colorado house and Carol tells TMZ ... they were approached by producers of the new highly anticipated Netflix docuseries "Cold Case: Who Killed JonBenét Ramsey?" -- but they took a hard pass.

In fact, Carol says she and her husband have turned down all Hollywood offers that have come their way over the years, including one from Dr. Phil, and another worth 7 figures.

8:23 AM PT -- Boulder police have responded to disparaging comments from John Ramsey, telling TMZ in a statement ... "The killing of JonBenét was an unspeakable crime and this tragedy has never left our hearts. This investigation will always be a priority for the Boulder Police Department.”

The department is "committed to following up on every lead and we are continuing to work with DNA experts and our law enforcement partners around the country until this tragic case is solved."

John Ramsey remains hopeful that some significant changes in the police department could help catch his daughter JonBenét's killer ... while blasting how law enforcement mishandled the case over the past 28 years.