Luigi Mangionethe accused murderer in the Brian Thompson murder case, was living his best life in the months leading up to the controversial shooting… and enjoyed an action-packed trip to Asia earlier this year.
A source with direct knowledge tells TMZ … they had been vacationing with a friend in Krabi, Thailand, and met Mangione by chance at a Muay Thai fight in April 2024. We’re told the trio hit it off and later reconnected around town together and even planned a future road trip.
The source says the group briefly split up when Luigi left for Phuket, and they headed to Malaysia. However, the trio eventually reunited in Thailand and began their planned road trip, which included stops in Khao Sok and Bangkok.
The source says Mangione never displayed any strange behavior during their time together… and even described the Ivy League graduate as a “super friendly, communicative and open” man, a sentiment expressed by several others who knew him.
Although the source recalls Luigi mentioning something about a back injury during their travels… they say he didn’t share too many specifics.
The injury didn’t seem to limit his activities, but we were told there was a day when he decided to give up a walk after explaining that he wasn’t feeling well.
In a video obtained by TMZ … Luigi at least appeared to be pain-free while riding on the back of a motorcycle in Thailand.
TMZ.com
As you can see in the video, he smiled broadly and threw a shaka symbol… which seemed to indicate he was having a good time.
We’re told the trio kept in touch for some time after their adventure… with the source saying Mangione almost met them in Vietnam when they were visiting there.
Still, the source says they stopped contacting Mangione in May 2024, who stopped responding to text messages.
Once again, the source emphasizes that there is no evidence of violent behavior… no incidents where he expressed extreme opinions, worldviews or ideologies.
The bottom line is that Luigi was easy-going and basically a normal guy.
Mangione has been accused of murder and weapons charges in connection with the fatal shooting of Thompson last week. His lawyer, Thomas Dickey says Luigi plans to plead not guilty.