The Claim That Luigi Mangione's Mom Needed a $180,000 Back Procedure May Be Fake

With Luigi Mangione now in police custody and facing a murder charge for the killing of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson, people are eager to piece together the events surrounding the crime — such as how his presumed backpack filled with Monopoly money ties in and what his direct motive may have been.

We’ve learned from Luigi’s former roommate and friend that he suffered debilitating back pain and even underwent major back surgery, but still struggled with chronic pain.

A manifesto circulating online claiming his mother suffered from nerve pain adds to the intrigue. These could be plausible motives for him to target the CEO, especially if he and his family encountered difficulties obtaining treatment due to insurance blockages. With Luigi’s mother's alleged nerve pain now at the forefront as a possible reason for the murder, people are eager to learn more about her condition, if she has one.

Kathleen Mangione, 60, allegedly suffers from neuropathy, a condition typically accompanied by symptoms like numbness, loss of sensation, and tingling, according to Yale Medicine. However, there are different types of neuropathy — motor, sensory, and autonomic nerve — and they all involve a person experiencing "misfiring of the peripheral nerve cells." Symptoms can range from pain and discomfort to a complete loss of sensation.

A post shared on Substack claiming to be Luigi's manifesto says Kathleen was diagnosed with neuropathy at 41, suggesting she has endured the condition for decades. However, the document doesn’t match the actual manifesto posted by journlalist Ken Klippenstein. The Substack version was reviewed by Hidden True Crime podcast hosts Lauren Matthias and Dr. John Matthias.

Since no one refuted the document until Ken shared Luigi's actual manifesto from his arrest, the claims about his mother were initially taken at face value. DailyMail reviewed the breakdown of the manifesto, which allegedly details Kathleen's nerve condition. However, the episode where they discuss this doesn’t appear to be available for viewers, although the podcasters do post content for paid subscribers on Patreon.

To further depict Luigi's mother as suffering from severe nerve pain, the unverified manifesto described her condition in detail. It claimed the pain "started 10 years before [her diagnosis] with burning sensations in her feet and occasional sharp stabbing pains. At first, the pain would last a few moments, then fade to tingling, and eventually disappear after a few days."

It further claimed that when his mom first noticed the pain, she ignored it, but it would return intermittently until it eventually reached a point where she was feeling the pain weekly.

"At that point, by the time the tingling faded to numbness, the pain would start, and the discomfort became constant. Even going from the couch to the kitchen to make her own lunch became a major endeavor," the Substack manifesto noted.

While it’s unclear if Luigi's mom actually suffers from nerve pain or neuropathy, the unverified Substack manifesto attempts to justify Luigi's alleged murder of Brian by claiming his mother faced a substantial medical bill.

The Substack document also claims that Luigi's mom's initial medical opinions labeled her condition as "psychosomatic," advising her to "relax, de-stress, and sleep more." However, when she sought a second opinion, a doctor diagnosed her with a compressed nerve in her spine and recommended surgery costing $180,000, along with a potential 12-month recovery period for full recovery, according to DailyMail.

With the Substack manifesto proving not to be the original, attention is shifting back to Luigi's own back condition, which has been verified by friends. This may also shed light on the dismay he felt toward health insurers and the medical field in general, especially after undergoing surgery for his own condition.