A look inside Luigi Mangione’s ‘missing months’ before he ‘killed’ the CEO

Mangione backpacked through Asia in May 2024 to celebrate his 26th birthday. Seven months later he would be arrested and charged with murder.

Family and friends have said Mangione “disappeared” shortly after returning from his backpacking trip to Asia. New York Times a “journey that now seems to have been crucial for him.”

According to the publication, the now 27-year-old messaged his friends at the start of the trip about his “wild nights,” including an anecdote in which he was allegedly attacked by seven transgender “ladyboys” while in Thailand.

Shortly afterwards, however, Mangione left his wild new friends and headed to the quiet village of Tekawa, Japan. In a voicemail to one of his new friends, Mangione called the area “beautiful.”

“There are little, little villages here, just on the edge of the cliffs,” Mangione reported, before telling his friend, “I’m just going to zen out and do some Buddha-doing.”