Luigi Mangione pleads guilty to federal stalking charges in the killing of UnitedHealthcare CEO

NEW YORK— Luigi Mangione pleaded blameworthy connected Friday to national stalking charges successful the 2024 sidesplitting of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson.

Mangione, 28, entered the plea astatine a hastily scheduled proceeding successful Manhattan national court, resolving 1 of 2 cases against him successful transportation with Thompson’s death. With this blameworthy plea, his lawyers could question to person the authorities lawsuit thrown retired connected treble jeopardy grounds.

Mangione was charged by some national and authorities prosecutors with ambushing Thompson, 50, extracurricular a New York City edifice connected Dec. 4, 2024, arsenic the security enforcement walked to his company’s yearly capitalist conference.

Surveillance video of the sidesplitting showed a masked gunman shooting Thompson from behind. Police accidental “delay,” “deny” and “depose” were written connected the ammunition, mimicking a operation utilized to picture however insurers debar paying claims. That item — and revelations that Mangione’s backstage writings lambasted wellness insurers arsenic greedy, according to authorities — made the lawsuit a fulcrum for statement astir the manufacture and made Mangione a origin célèbre for immoderate of its critics.

Mangione ne'er was a UnitedHealthcare customer, according to constabulary and the company. A University of Pennsylvania postgraduate from a affluent Maryland family, helium was arrested 5 days aft the shooting, erstwhile helium was spotted astatine a McDonald’s successful Altoona, Pennsylvania. It’s astir 230 miles (370 kilometers) westbound of Manhattan.

Thompson led 1 of the United States’ largest wellness insurers, but helium wasn’t good known extracurricular the industry. Trained arsenic an accountant, helium had worked astatine genitor institution UnitedHealth Group Inc. for 20 years and became CEO of its security arm, UnitedHealthcare, successful 2021.

A proceedings connected authorities execution charges is scheduled to commencement adjacent month. It is unclear whether that proceedings would spell guardant if Mangione pleaded blameworthy successful the national case.

The national charges impeach Mangione of stalking Thompson to origin his death. Both the national and authorities cases could pb to a beingness situation sentence. A national justice earlier this twelvemonth tossed retired further charges that could person exposed Mangione to a imaginable decease penalty.

Mangione had complained astir the imaginable of 2 trials, telling a justice successful February: “It’s the aforesaid proceedings twice. One positive 1 is two. Double jeopardy by immoderate commonsense definition.”

Under New York law, a authorities prosecution could perchance beryllium barred if the national lawsuit is resolved first.

The state’s treble jeopardy protections footwear successful if a assemblage has been sworn successful a anterior prosecution, specified arsenic a national case, oregon if that prosecution ends successful a blameworthy plea. Mangione’s cases impact antithetic charges arising from the aforesaid people of conduct.

In a missive past month, authorities prosecutors objected to the anticipation of a blameworthy plea successful the national lawsuit wiping retired the authorities case.

U.S. District Judge Margaret M. Garnett has delivered immoderate setbacks to the defense, including ruling successful January that prosecutors could usage items collected from Mangione’s backpack during his apprehension arsenic grounds against him.

They included a 3D-printed pistol that investigators said matched the 1 utilized to termination Thompson and a notebook successful which authorities accidental Mangione described his intent to termination an security executive.

In June, Mangione’s lawyers said they would prosecute a psychiatric defence successful the authorities lawsuit but reversed people a time later. The defense, involving claims that helium was suffering from utmost affectional disturbance astatine the clip of the killing, isn’t allowed successful national court.

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Durkin Richer reported from Washington. Associated Press writer Jennifer Peltz successful New York contributed.