The San Francisco sergeant who filed a missing-person report for Luigi Mangione's mother says he did not hear the allegedly damning remark that she could "see him" committing the ambush slaying of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson. NYPD Chief of Detectives Joseph Kenny attributed the line to Kathleen Mangione after the arrest, but defense lawyers report no record of the comment in discovery. Sgt. Michael Horan told Rolling Stone he spoke with the family before the murder and has not spoken with the mother since the cases were linked; he suggested the FBI may have later interviewed her. Mangione has pleaded not guilty and faces possible federal death-penalty exposure and state life sentences.
Sergeant Denies Hearing Mother's Remark Linking Son To CEO Slaying; Defense Says No Record
Police sergeant denies hearing Luigi Mangione mother's alleged damning statement about CEO killing
A San Francisco police sergeant says he did not hear the disputed — and potentially damaging — remark attributed to the mother of accused killer Luigi Mangione, who was alleged to have told investigators the ambush shooting of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson was "something she could see him doing," according to a new report.
Key Developments
Mangione is accused of stalking UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson, 50, and shooting him in the back outside a Manhattan hotel last year. At a Dec. 17, 2024 news briefing, NYPD Chief of Detectives Joseph Kenny told reporters that Kathleen Mangione appeared to acknowledge the possibility her son could have committed the crime during a Dec. 7 conversation — two days before Mangione was arrested at a Pennsylvania McDonald’s.
Luigi Mangione, charged with the murder of Brian Thompson, the CEO of UnitedHealthcare, appears in State Supreme Court in Manhattan during an evidence suppression hearing in his case on Friday, Dec. 12, 2025.
"They had a conversation where she didn't indicate that it was her son in the photograph, but she said it might be something that she could see him doing," Kenny said. "So that information was going to be passed along to the detectives the next morning, but fortunately we apprehended him before we could act on that."
Those remarks were widely reported. But after the NYPD turned over discovery, Mangione's defense team said in court filings that they found no record of the comment attributed to Kathleen Mangione.
Sergeant's Account
Sgt. Michael Horan of the San Francisco Police Department filed a missing-person report for Kathleen Mangione on Nov. 18, 2024, weeks before the killing, after she said she could not locate her son. Kenny later said the detective handling that missing-person case — identified as Horan — notified NYPD colleagues that the person he was seeking "bears a resemblance" to a smiling suspect seen checking into a Manhattan hostel prior to Thompson's murder.
Luigi Mangione allegedly killed UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson.
In a recent interview with Rolling Stone, Horan denied ever taking part in a conversation in which Kathleen Mangione said she could picture her son committing an assassination. "That was never from us," he said, adding that he filed the missing-person report before the murder and did not speak with the mother again after the cases were linked. Horan suggested the FBI may have interviewed Kathleen Mangione later that weekend.
Horan also said San Francisco officers spoke with one of Mangione's sisters, who did not report any remark like the one Kenny described.
Luigi Mangione, charged with the murder of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson, appears in State Supreme Court in Manhattan during an evidence suppression hearing in his case on Friday, Dec. 12, 2025.
Defense Response And Legal Stakes
Mangione's defense attorney, Karen Friedman Agnifilo, told reporters outside a Manhattan courthouse that Kenny's description of Kathleen Mangione's comment was incorrect. "There is no such statement," she said. "It was never made. In fact, what Mrs. Mangione said was that she could never see her son being a risk to himself or others."
Mangione has pleaded not guilty to charges in New York, Pennsylvania and federal courts. He faces possible federal death-penalty exposure on the most serious counts and could face life in prison if convicted in New York.
Neither the Manhattan District Attorney's office nor the NYPD provided an immediate comment on defense filings disputing the alleged remark. Multiple outlets, including Fox News Digital, and at least one book, have reported on Chief Kenny's earlier statement.
