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| - NYPD Commissioner Jessica Tisch said during a Dec. 9 news conference that officers with the Altoona Police Department responded to a McDonald's employee's tip and found Mangione "was acting suspiciously and was carrying multiple fraudulent IDs as well as a U.S. passport," including at least one "fraudulent New Jersey ID." However, Snopes found no evidence to confirm the rumor that the McDonald's employee called police after Mangione presented a fake ID to purchase food. The matter possibly originated with a claim made in a New York Post article.
On Dec. 9, 2024, after police in Altoona, Pennsylvania, took 26-year-old Luigi Nicholas Mangione into custody as a suspect in the Dec. 4 shooting death of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson in New York City, a rumor spread on social media that he was caught after trying to use a fake ID to purchase food at a McDonald's restaurant.
For example, the @DailyLoud account on X posted (archived), in part, "BREAKING: Person of interest in UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson's fatal shooting caught trying to use a fake ID at McDonald's."
One user replying under the post asked, "Why would you need to show ID at a McDonalds? Was he applying for a job?" Another person also replied, "I'm so confused. Why show ID at McDonald's?" Many other people asked the same question.
Another user posted (archived) a quote and screenshot, both sourced from a New York Post article, reading, "busted possibly trying to use a fake ID in a McDonald's.' Literally cannot make this stuff up." Other posts on X also made the same general claim, with some users citing the same Post story.
We located no evidence to substantiate the rumor that Mangione had attempted to use a fake ID at McDonald's — a claim that generated quite a bit of skepticism on social media, given that there are few, if any, plausible scenarios in which a person might need to present ID at a fast-food restaurant (unless alcohol is served in the establishment).
It's possible the rumor stemmed from New York Post article that featured an opening paragraph reading, "A person of interest was nabbed Monday in the fatal shooting of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson — busted possibly trying to use a fake ID in a McDonald's, law enforcement sources said."
In a Dec. 9 news conference, NYPD Commissioner Jessica Tisch said a McDonald's employee "recognized" Mangione and called police. Responding officers in Altoona found Mangione carrying "multiple fraudulent IDs." Tisch did not say that he presented a fake ID to purchase food.
"The suspect was in a McDonald's and was recognized by an employee who then called local police," Tisch said to the room of reporters. "Responding officers questioned the suspect, who was acting suspiciously and was carrying multiple fraudulent IDs as well as a U.S. passport. Upon further investigation, officers recovered a firearm on his person as well as a suppressor, both consistent with the weapon used in the murder."
"They also recovered clothing, including a mask consistent with those worn by our wanted individual. Also recovered was a fraudulent New Jersey ID, matching the ID our suspect used to check into his New York City hostel before the shooting incident. Additionally, officers recovered a handwritten document that speaks to both his motivation and mindset."
The Altoona Police Department posted (archived) on Facebook that the arrest occurred in the morning hours, shortly after dispatching officers to the scene.
NYPD Chief of Detectives Joseph Kenny said during the news conference that, when Altoona's police officers arrived, Mangione "was sitting there eating." He also said Mangione "was in possession of a ghost gun that had the capability of firing 9mm rounds, and a suppressor," adding that it "may have been made on a 3D printer" and that ballistics testing might determine whether the gun matched the one that killed Thompson. Kenny said his officers had not located records of any prior U.S. arrests for Mangione.
Tisch, Kenny and New York City Mayor Eric Adams credited the media, public and the sharing of photos of the suspect with aiding in Mangione's arrest.
Adams referred to Mangione as a "strong person of interest."
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