He's at the center of a case in which a man was killed in broad daylight in Manhattan. Still, that hasn't stopped people online from obsessing over him.
On Monday night, police charged 26-year-old Luigi Mangione with murder and other felonies in connection with the fatal shooting of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson.
After Mangione's name became public, internet sleuths did some digging and found social media profiles, a Goodreads review he wrote, and a shirtless photo, which immediately went viral with a single tweet of the picture garnering more than 31 million views.
Even before his name was known, many on the internet zeroed in on his appearance just based on the blurry photos in the poster the FBI circulated last week.
In a video with 2.8 million views, comedian Matt Buechele said of the poster: "'Y'all look for a low-key gorgeous assassin walking around the city.' It's like, you know how many gorgeous men there are in Manhattan? I'm supposed to just find him?"
The interest in Mangione's appearance also extended beyond the virtual world: PopCrave shared a video of contestants in NYC lined up at a lookalike contest on Dec. 7.
The reactions to Mangione's looks have been swift, predictable, and, in some cases, disturbing.
"I can fix him," one Instagram commenter wrote. "Let my man go!" another said. "Oh he’s even hotter with his mask and shirt off," another wrote.
These reactions and jokes, some mental health experts explain, speak to the importance our society places on physical appearances. Some of the more extreme comments also remind us there is a segment of the population that finds violent − and even potentially violent − people attractive. And that's problematic for several reasons.
"This has been happening for time immemorial," says Stephanie Sarkis, a psychotherapist and author of the book "Healing from Toxic Relationships: 10 Essential Steps to Recover from Gaslighting, Narcissism, and Emotional Abuse."
"It could be about the power of that person," Sarkis says. "It could be that there's a danger to it. It could be also that the person thinks that they can fix the person. And sometimes there's no explanation for it. This is just what somebody's attracted to."
Why do people find controversial − and even dangerous − people attractive?
Remember that time Netflix issued a statement telling viewers to stop lusting after Ted Bundy and other serial killers? Or when actor Penn Badgley called out fans for romanticizing his murderous character on the show "You"?
There are many reasons why some people are drawn to those with violent histories and reputations.
One reason is that people may feel bad for them and see them as people who need saving. This applies not just to people lusting after accused murderers, but to people who find themselves drawn to toxic relationships in general.
"We tend to feel bad for some men, and we feel like we can change them or we can fix them," says Marni Feuerman, a psychotherapist and author of "Ghosted and Breadcrumbed: Stop Falling for Unavailable Men and Get Smart about Healthy Relationships."
And our society's view of beauty plays a major role in whom people find attractive too, says relationship therapist Philip Lewis. As Mangione receives lots of attention online, it makes him more appealing to some, Lewis explains, and it becomes more socially acceptable − or even trendy − to find him attractive.
That doesn't make those thirsting after the accused suspect in the CEO killing acceptable. Others online chimed in to point that out: "The sexualization of the CEO Shooter is gross and shouldn’t be normalized," one user posed on X. "The way the United Health Care CEO killer Luigi Mangione is being celebrated & turned into a viral sensation is sick," another added.
Luigi Mangione has fans. Why?
Another reason people may find Mangione attractive is because of what he has come to represent; Thompson's killing has sparked a larger conversation about issues with the affordability of healthcare.
Following Thompson's murder, some people online shared memes about his death − to the shock and disgust of many others. "Saturday Night Live" even made jokes about it during a recent broadcast.
The polarized reactions spoke to Americans' frustrations with the healthcare industry and the need to blame their problems on a specific individual, like Thompson. Some are looking for change in the healthcare industry and have latched on to Mangione as a result. The 26-year-old has been charged with murder, forgery, tampering with records or identification, giving police false ID, and possessing instruments of a crime.
But psychotherapist Amy Morin points out that it is important as we react to developments in the news to remember that a person was killed, and it's important to show empathy as we react to the events surrounding Thompson's death: "When you remember that the individual is someone's loved one, you bring more compassion into the equation."