Luigi Mangione Seen Eating McDonald's Hashbrown Before Arrest, Police Pics Show

Luigi Mangione, the accused killer of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson, was arrested at a McDonald's in Pennsylvania Monday ... and in photos released by police, he's seen eating a hashbrown prior to his arrest.

Pennsylvania State Police posted an update to the case Tuesday morning on X, urging anyone with further information about the suspect to submit tips to authorities. Police posted a series of photos showing Mangione at the Altoona McDonald's restaurant and in his holding cell.

One pic shows two images of Luigi wearing a stocking cap, a heavy jacket and a blue surgical mask ... and he's holding what appears to be a partially eaten hashbrown with the mask pulled aside. It's unclear who took the pic.

The photo shows him sitting in a booth in a corner of the restaurant ... matching how authorities described their encounter with the suspect yesterday. Another pic shows him standing up with the same background behind him, hat and mask off ... and the third shows him standing in his socks inside a holding cell, wearing jeans and a long-sleeve T-shirt.

Mangione was booked on gun, forgery and fake ID charges in PA ... and hours later, authorities in New York formally charged him with the murder of Brian Thompson, who was fatally shot early Wednesday morning last week outside a Midtown Manhattan hotel.

The suspect allegedly walked up behind Thompson, shot him multiple times, then escaped on an electric bicycle, and fled the state.

A customer at the Altoona McDonald's reportedly saw Mangione yesterday and recognized him from widely distributed suspect photos, and a store employee called police.