When Luigi Mangione was brought into a Pennsylvania courthouse, his body language revealed crucial information about his state of mind, as observed by a body language expert.
Mangione, who is accused of killing UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson in Manhattan, was apprehended in Altoona, Pennsylvania, after a McDonald’s patron noticed his resemblance to the shooting suspect portrayed in images.
Currently facing charges in Pennsylvania for forgery and unlawfully carrying a firearm, Mangione has opted not to forgo his right to an extradition hearing, where he will potentially be transferred to New York to face allegations of murder.
As he was escorted into Blair County Court on Tuesday by a cadre of officers, the jumpsuit-clad 26-year-old was wide-eyed and had his head on a swivel as he shouted at surrounding reporters. Susan Constantine told Fox News Digital that Mangione showed a “rigidity” that indicated he was fearful.
Luigi Mangione pictured in a Pennsylvania mugshot after his arrest in connection with the murder of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson. (Obtained by Fox News Digital)
“This was not the sinister killing [face] – this was him, his charismatic personality, his flirty personality, the one that everybody and his friends and family are all talking about,” Constantine said. “He’s a great guy. They like him. He’s, you know, engaging and he’s, you know, speaks in front of the public and doesn’t have any fear about it. That’s his personality.”
“These types of killers disassociate – it’s called cubing,” Constantine continued. “So when they’re in active pursuit, there is one personality. And then when he’s in relationships, he has another one… he’s able to disassociate from what is the sinister thoughts and ideas and radicalism that’s actually flooding through his mind.
“All of a sudden, that smile turned to a frown [during his perp walk] – the lifted cheeks turn into droopy cheeks. And then he had a more rigid and more tension in his facial expression that was dissimilar to what we have seen in the past. So this was a game over expression.”
A photo obtained by Fox News Digital shows Luigi Mangione. (Obtained by Fox News Digital)
The suspect’s confident stance during the shooting, captured on surveillance footage, is another side to the “cube” – and indicates the planning that went into the attack.
“He had already rehearsed – he was ready for the engagement. This was not something that just happened spontaneously. This is something that he thought out, measured and planned,” Constantine said. “That’s why you see his body language being very much in control. He’s not startled. He knows exactly what he’s going to do. That’s why his countenance is down. His energy level is down because he’s in hyper-focus.”
The suspected gunman in UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson’s murder, believed to be Luigi Mangione, is seen flirting with a hostel employee on surveillance footage before the Dec. 4 shooting. (NYPD)
Constantine told Fox News Digital that Mangione’s body language – both during his perp walk and in a photograph snapped by police in a holding cell the day before – indicated that he did not expect to be apprehended by police.
“There are behavioral signatures and cognitions of people that are being deceptive,” Constantine said. “[People display] rigidity when [they are] caught. What do they do? They sit up straight, they’re very militant… So when you think about his structure, he’s just very robotic.”
