Luigi Mangione, suspect in the killing of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson, arrives at a heliport with members of the NYPD on December 19, 2024, in New York City. | Source: Stephanie Keith / Getty
In a moment of rich irony, alleged health insurance CEO murderer Luigi Mangione landed in New York City on Thursday following his extradition from Pennsylvania only to be greeted by people who included the Big Apple’s mayor, Eric Adams, who is, himself, similarly facing felony criminal charges in Manhattan.
A New York grand jury formally indicted Mangione on first-degree murder — a terrorism charge — for the brazen killing of Brian Thompson outside of a hotel in midtown earlier this month. Mangione was arraigned on Thursday.
MORE: Read The Full Federal Indictment Against NYC Mayor Eric Adams
And nearly three months ago, a New York City grand jury formally indicted Adams on five total counts of conspiracy, wire fraud and bribery charges that alleged years of brazen corruption.
However, that’s where the similarities seemingly end between Adams and Mangione, the latter of whom has managed to cultivate a serious celebrity status following Thompson being shot in the back in an ambush attack caught on video. Critics of the health insurance industry have branded Mangione a hero for acting against a business sector that’s been accused of prioritizing greed over wellness.
Protestors stand outside after Luigi Mangione left Blair County Courthouse in NYPD custody, in Hollidaysburg, Pennsylvania, on December 19, 2024. | Source: ADAM GRAY / Getty
Adams, on the other hand, has seen steadily waning public support for his mayorship as members of his administration and their affiliates are increasingly presented as being guilty by association with the mayor in some way, shape or fashion. Critics of Adams, the second-ever African American mayor of New York City, have called for his resignation and said his indictment is a “disgrace” to Black New Yorkers.
However, Adams still decided to insert himself into the middle of the law enforcement scrum escorting Mangione on Thursday afternoon, despite the optics of a federally indicted alleged felonious criminal purporting moral authority over another federally indicted alleged felonious criminal.
“This act of terrorism and the violence that stems from (Mangione’s case) is something that will not be tolerated in the city. We wanted to personally be here to show the symbolism of leading from the front,” Adams told reporters before condemning people who are showing support for Mangione.
“You’re celebrating using violence to solve an issue,” Adams said before adding later: “A person that uses a gun to solve a concern – if it’s on a school campus or our streets – there are mechanisms in this country for how to organize around those issues of concern. You don’t use a gun.”
New York Mayor Eric Adams and NYPD Commissioner Jessica Tisch hold a press conference after Luigi Mangione, suspect in the killing of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson in New York City, arrives at a heliport with members of the NYPD on December 19, 2024, in New York City. | Source: Stephanie Keith / Getty
(Of course, the NYPD has been accused of quickly resorting to gun violence, particularly in Black and brown communities, with an impunity that Adams has long supported, but that’s another story…)
Adams’ words came on the same day that one of his top aides was the recipient of a federal indictment alleging conspiracy, bribery and money laundering.
Ingrid Lewis-Martin “gave special treatment to a pair of real estate developers when their construction project ran into a bureaucratic hurdle,” Politico reported. “In exchange for her help, the duo provided Lewis-Martin and her son with more than $100,000 in checks and cash, which Lewis-Martin’s son used to buy a Porsche, the complaint alleged.”
Former chief advisor to Mayor of New York City Eric Adams, Ingrid P. Lewis-Martin (C) arrives for her arraignment on bribery charges at the State Supreme Court in New York City on December 19, 2024. | Source: ANGELA WEISS / Getty
The reference to “real estate developers” and “their construction project” is directly related to Adams, who was under a federal investigation for at least three years prior to his indictment for possibly conspiring with Turkey to receive donations from the foreign nation, which would be a violation of U.S. campaign finance laws. Adams was also being investigated for allegedly receiving other improper benefits from Turkey, which stood to benefit from a state-of-the-art Turkish consulate building in New York City. Among those alleged benefits are what the New York Times described as “valuable flight upgrades they believe the mayor received from Turkish Airlines.”
The investigations have notably included the feds confiscating electronic devices from Adams and several of his staffers, two of whom had their homes raided. Multiple others in Adams’ administration have since resigned.
Adams, a career Democrat, has recently been flirting with the idea of becoming a Republican amid reported hopes that Donald Trump will pardon him, something the president-elect said he would be open to considering.
It is hard to ignore that part of the larger ironic context in which Adams decided to escort Mangione.
SEE ALSO:
NYC Mayor Eric Adams And His Complicated Relationship With The Black Church
Jordan Neely’s Family Calls Out NYC Mayor Eric Adams: ‘You Can’t Assist Someone With A Chokehold’
