On Tuesday night, if you were browsing Shein’s selection of “pastoral style gentleman shirts for every day,” you might have noticed a familiar face modeling the clothing: a smiling Luigi Mangione.
Mangione, the prime suspect in the murder of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson, is currently in jail at the Brooklyn Federal Prison as he awaits trial. Given his imprisonment, it’s unlikely that Mangione posed for the photo or even knew his likeness was being used.
Shein regularly uses AI to generate models for its site and to power its fast-fashion business by projecting consumer demand, instituting dynamic pricing, and getting consumers recommendations to help them navigate the thousands of clothes available on the site.
It’s possible that the unusual choice of model could be chalked up to the actions of a rogue employee or vendor (Mangione has become, to some, a folk hero)—especially as the lighting on the face and awkward positioning of the head on the body suggests photoshopping rather than AI generation.
The listing has since been taken down, and Shein has not responded to Fast Company’s request for comment.
A representative from the company told the BBC, “The image in question was provided by a third-party vendor and was removed immediately upon discovery,” adding that the company is investigating the oversight.
The development comes at a bad time for Shein as the company deals with President Trump’s decision to close the “de minimis” loophole, which had allowed businesses like Shein to ship products to the United States for free if the orders were under $800.
Now, the company will likely have to pay extra to ship items and may pass on some costs to its already price-sensitive consumers. Shein is not a public company, but has been preparing an IPO for the second half of this year.