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Tesla CEO Elon Musk sparks fury following the deactivation of Luigi Mangione‘s account on X, formerly Twitter amid reported assassination plots. The 26-year-old gained notoriety after becoming the major suspect in the murder of United Healthcare CEO Brian Thompson in December 2024 in New York City. His arrest and legal proceedings have stirred widespread media coverage, as Americans remain divided, with some envisioning him as some “folk hero” and others have condemned his alleged crime, stressing the need to face the law if proven guilty. He faces multiple charges, including murder, stalking, terrorism, the use of a ghost firearm, using a fake ID, and violence.
Amid the growing interest in his case, the suspect garnered a massive following on social media, with various platforms deactivating his accounts in the wake of his arrest. The latest platform to seemingly kick out Luigi Mangione is Elon Musk’s X, formerly Twitter. While it’s unclear if the platform took down the account or if the action came from his team in the best interest of his case, the move has not been well received by fans.
Fans React to Luigi Mangione’s Deactivated X Account
Many have turned to social media to voice their outrage upon noticing the disappearance of Luigi Mangione’s X account, unsurprisingly directing their anger at Elon Musk. Most believed the move to deactivate the alleged killer’s account was a means to silence him lest he stirred more public rage. Via Reddit, one fan reacted,
“Honestly not surprising that he’s been silenced. If he’s allowed social media in prison, maybe he can transition to Blue Sky instead. Anyway, Free Luigi.”
Another shot,
“Honestly kind of shocked it wasn’t deactivated well before now. Seems like something Zuck/Musk would have done months ago.”
A third explained,
“Most shooter’s accounts are deactivated within hours. Weird that it was allowed to stay up for this long. Though most shooters don’t have nearly the support he does.”
Many called out Elon Musk for the deactivation of Luigi Mangione’s account, suggesting it was a political move. According to them, the move only highlighted the tech mogul’s hypocrisy, as he appeared to take sides despite long promoting the concept of free speech on his platform. A Reddit user fired,
“Strange that pretty much any kind of outright racial abuse and hatred goes on Musk’s Twitter, but this gets deactivated.”
Another wrote,
“Free speech my ass. F–k Elon.”
Another fan suggested the CEO may have decided to ban the alleged killer from his platform because “he’s worried in general” that he might encounter the same fate as the late Brian Thompson. The Redditor believes Musk’s paranoia only intensified with each passing day, evidenced by his decision to have his son tag along on outings. Worse still, the build-up of Luigi Mangione’s CEO murder case as the court date draws closer, coupled with the prevailing attacks on Tesla products nationwide may have Elon Musk more on edge. One user wrote,
“I think Musk is worried he may be the next target amidst the Tesla arson attacks.”
US Senator Highlights Musk’s Assassination Attempt
Just hours before Luigi Mangione’s account deactivation, Elon Musk appeared to address the plots to assassinate him on X, reposting a clip by Senator Ted Cruz. In the post, which tagged Musk as “a target of assassination attempts,” the US senator described the Democratic party as “a party of hate and rage,” which has transferred a huge amount of that hate to Elon Musk. He also addressed the widespread attack on the tech mogul, and how his former allies and “ass-kissers” are now “trying to kill him.” The Republican, who spoke on Fox News’ Hannity further highlighted the extent of this vitriol via caption, writing,
“Elon is a target of assassination attempts and his dealerships are being firebombed all because he’s fighting for our country and to save humanity.”
Meanwhile, Mangione’s New York federal case, initially slated for March 19, 2025, has been postponed to April 18 for undisclosed reasons. This followed his legal team’s move to have the court dismiss Mangione’s DNA evidence, arguing that the test sample obtained from a snack offered to him after his arrest should be inadmissible in court. The suspected CEO killer continues to gain support from the public even as his case hovers on.
