Newly released body camera testimony and courtroom evidence are revealing pivotal new details about the arrest of Luigi Mangione, the man accused in the fatal shooting of Brian Thompson, the chief executive of UnitedHealthcare. As suppression hearings continue in Manhattan Criminal Court, the public is now seeing — minute by minute — how a quiet morning inside a Pennsylvania McDonald’s brought an end to one of the most closely followed manhunts in recent memory.

The killing of Thompson in Midtown Manhattan last year triggered a five-day nationwide search that dominated headlines across major media platforms, including CNN. Grainy surveillance images circulated through national outlets showed a masked suspect moving between Starbucks, a hostel, and a taxi — a trail prosecutors now argue clearly leads to Mangione.

But one lingering mystery remained: Why was the suspect inside a McDonald’s in Altoona, Pennsylvania, after such a high-profile crime?

That question is now being answered through sworn testimony, surveillance footage, and the dramatic recounting of the moment when officers realized the man they were questioning was the same suspect seen across television screens nationwide.

One of the first officers to arrive at the restaurant, Altoona Police Department officer Joseph Detwiler, admitted he initially doubted the 911 call placed by the McDonald’s manager.

“I did not think it was going to be the person that they thought it was,” he testified in court.

That skepticism vanished the moment he approached a lone man seated near the restaurant’s restrooms, wearing a face mask and tan beanie. After officers asked him to pull the mask down, recognition was instant.

“I knew it was him immediately,” Detwiler said.

According to the defense timeline, approximately 20 minutes passed before Mangione was formally read his Miranda rights. During that time, officers determined he had provided a false name. By then, the manhunt that had stretched across state lines was effectively over — inside a fast-food restaurant during breakfast hours.

Jurors also heard the calm but consequential 911 call placed at 9:14 a.m. on December 9, 2024. The McDonald’s manager told dispatchers that several customers were alarmed by a man who “looked like the CEO shooter from New York.”

She described him as wearing a black jacket, medical mask, and tan beanie, noting that only his eyebrows were visible. He sat in the lobby with a pharmacy bag placed in front of him. Officers were dispatched immediately.

That single phone call transformed a routine morning into a nationally significant police response.

Following his arrest, Mangione was held at SCI Huntingdon while awaiting extradition to New York. Corrections officers testified that Mangione made unsolicited statements during constant watch.

Officer Matthew Henry claimed Mangione volunteered that his backpack contained a 3D-printed gun, foreign currency, and a magazine of ammunition. However, Henry acknowledged he never documented the statements and only reported them weeks later after questioning by the Manhattan District Attorney’s Office — a delay that defense attorneys are now using to challenge credibility.

Another officer, Tomas Rivers, said he monitored Mangione for 16 hours and described multiple two-way conversations about healthcare systems, media coverage, and international medical policy. His testimony included the striking remark that prison officials were trying to avoid “an Epstein-style situation,” highlighting the sensitivity and high security surrounding the case.

At the center of the ongoing hearing is a high-stakes legal fight over what evidence jurors will ultimately be allowed to see. Mangione’s legal team is seeking to suppress:

They argue this evidence was obtained before a valid search warrant was secured and that his rights were violated during the arrest process.

Presiding over the hearings, Judge Gregory Carro has already reviewed surveillance footage tracing Mangione’s movements from the murder scene to his final moments as a free man inside the McDonald’s.

Prosecutors presented a chilling visual timeline: video of Thompson being shot on a Manhattan sidewalk, followed by images of the suspect captured inside nearby businesses and the back of a taxi. Those images were disseminated nationwide and became central to the manhunt.

Inside the Altoona McDonald’s, surveillance shows Mangione entering, ordering food, walking toward the back, and sitting alone at a corner table. Roughly 25 minutes later, two officers approach him. By the time he was taken into custody just before 10 a.m., at least eight officers were on site.

There was no audio — only the silent, methodical closing of a nationwide search.

This suppression hearing is more than a procedural step. It could shape the entire future of the prosecution. If key statements or physical evidence are excluded, the strength of the case against Mangione could be significantly altered.

With prosecutors indicating as many as two dozen witnesses may still testify, the hearings are expected to continue for several more days. Each witness adds another layer to a case that continues to capture public attention for its dramatic contrast: a powerful healthcare executive killed on a busy city street, and a suspect quietly eating breakfast in a Pennsylvania McDonald’s days later.

Bottom Line:
The newly revealed testimony and body camera evidence provide the clearest picture yet of how a national manhunt ended in one of the most ordinary places imaginable. As legal arguments intensify over what the jury will be allowed to hear, the outcome of this suppression hearing may ultimately determine how — and if — prosecutors can secure a conviction in the killing of a prominent American CEO.