Featured Image Credit: Jeff Swensen / Stringer / Handout / Handout/ Getty
The internet has become obsessed with Luigi Mangione.
From viral playlists being pulled down to jokes about Dave Franco playing him in the inevitable Ryan Murphy dramatization, Mario's younger brother is no longer the most famous Luigi in the world.
While there are plenty of jokes online about the 26-year-old, there's the very serious side involving the assassination of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson. Mangione was arrested following Thompson's murder and was apprehended in a McDonald's.
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There's a particularly dark fandom that's become obsessed with Mangione, leading to a number of high-profile fundraisers.
GoFundMe's terms and conditions clearly state that fundraisers can't be used for "the legal defense of financial and violent crimes, including those related to money laundering, murder, robbery, assault, battery, sex crimes or crimes against minors." NBC News reports that it found at least three fundraisers for Mangione, with all of them later being removed.
GoFundMe is refunding money to those who donated to Mangione's cause, but over on Christian site GiveSendGo, a campaign to help with his legal defense has raised over $125,785.
The December 4 Legal Committee told NBC News it's a group of 15 volunteers who were ‘moved' by Mangione's story: "Some of us are people who experience the pain and brutality of for-profit healthcare daily, and others of us are experienced providing support to people facing trial."
They've vowed to give all proceeds to Mangione's cause, although his lawyer has suggested he might not take them. Discussing the deluge of fundraisers in support of Mangione, Thomas Dickey told CNN he 'probably' wouldn’t accept the money: "To be honest with you, I probably wouldn't [accept offers]...I just don’t feel comfortable about that."
Still, the money keeps rolling in. Defending the campaign, GiveSendGo’s communications director Alex Shipley said: "We believe every person is entitled to due process in a court of law — not in the court of public opinion.
“To be absolutely clear, we do not support or condone vigilante justice. However, people have a constitutional right to a strong legal defense, and access to that defense should not be reserved only for the wealthy or those who fit a particular narrative.
"Our role is to give individuals and their communities the opportunity to fundraise for that defense, because true justice is served when everyone has equal access to a fair trial — regardless of the verdict."
GiveSendGo has previously come under fire for hosting fundraisers for the likes of Kyle Rittenhouse, and taking to X, CEO Jacob Wells has spoken out on the Mangione situation: "We have been dragged through the media as far-right extremists, but what can they say now after allowing a legal defense fund for Luigi Mangione? Definitely not a far-right figure, actually just the opposite."
When taken into custody, Mangione reportedly has a 3D-printed 'ghost gun' that matched ammo casings found at the scene of Thompson's murder that were marked with the words 'deny', 'defend', and 'depose'. There are also reports that he had a three-page handwritten manifesto that called out the state of the U.S. healthcare system. Mangione reportedly underwent spinal surgery in June 2023, but in the aftermath, had distanced himself from his friends and family.
Elsewhere, Meta has removed accounts connected to Mangione, while Reddit has taken down posts linking to his manifesto. Elon Musk reinstated Mangione's X account after it was suspended, and due to an influx of new followers, it's even been verified.
