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The man accused of fatally shooting the CEO of UnitedHealthcare pleaded not guilty Monday to murder and terrorism charges, as his lawyer complained that statements coming from the mayor of New York would make it difficult to get a fair trial.
Luigi Mangione, 26, was shackled and seated in a Manhattan court when he leaned into a microphone to enter his plea. The Manhattan district attorney formally charged him last week with multiple counts of murder, including murder as an act of terrorism, in a state case that will run parallel to his federal prosecution.
His first appearance in New York state court was blocked by federal prosecutors bringing their own indictments in the shooting. Federal charges could carry the possibility of the death penalty, while state charges carry a maximum penalty of life in prison without parole.
Prosecutors said the two cases will run in parallel, with state charges expected to go to trial first.
One of Mangione’s lawyers told the judge that government officials, including New York City Mayor Eric Adams, had turned Mangione into a political pawn, stripping him of his rights as a defendant and tainting the jury.
Federal prosecutors in Manhattan filed four new indictments against the alleged killer of UnitedHealthcare CEO Luigi Mangione, including a count of murder that could carry the death penalty.
“I am very concerned about my client’s right to a fair trial,” said Karen Friedman Agnifilo.
The city’s mayor and top police official stood amid a throng of heavily armed officers last Thursday as Mangione was driven to a Manhattan helipad and slowly escorted to the dock after being extradited from Pennsylvania.
“I wanted to look him in the eye and say that you have carried out this act of terrorism in my city – a city that the people of New York love,” the mayor told a local TV station.
Friedman Agnifilo accused federal and state prosecutors of promoting conflicting legal theories, calling their approach confusing and highly unusual. “Here he is being treated like a human ping pong ball between warring jurisdictions,” she said on Monday.
State Circuit Court Judge Gregory Carro responded that he has little control over what happens outside the courtroom, but said he can guarantee that Mangione will receive a fair trial.
Authorities say Mangione shot and killed Brian Thompson as he was walking to an investor conference in midtown Manhattan on the morning of Dec. 4.
Mangione was arrested at a McDonald’s in Pennsylvania after a five-day manhunt, carrying a gun matching the one used in the shooting and a fake ID, police said. He also carried a notebook in which he expressed hostility toward the health insurance industry, particularly wealthy executives, according to federal prosecutors.
Murder with intent to ’cause terror’: District Attorney
At a press conference last week announcing the state charges, Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg said the application of terrorism laws reflected the seriousness of “a terrifying, well-planned, targeted killing intended to shock, attract attention and intimidate.”
“In the most basic terms, this was a murder intended to cause terror,” he added.
Mangione is being held in federal prison in Brooklyn along with several other high-profile defendants, including Sean (Diddy) Combs and Sam Bankman-Fried.
The suspect in the slaying of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson has been charged with federal murder and felony stalking, according to a court document filed Thursday, in addition to the state murder and terrorism charges previously announced by New York prosecutors. Luigi Mangione was extradited to New York from Pennsylvania.
Outside the courthouse where Mangione appeared Monday, several dozen supporters chanted “Free Luigi,” as trumpets blared.
Natalie Monarrez, a 55-year-old Staten Island resident, said she joined the protests because she lost both her mother and her life savings to denied insurance claims.
“As extreme as it was, it sparked a conversation that we need to address this issue,” she said of the shooting. – That’s enough, people are fed up.
An Ivy League graduate from a prominent Maryland family, Mangione seemed estranged from family and friends in recent months. He often wrote on Internet forums about his struggle with back pain. He was never a customer of UnitedHealthcare, the insurer claims.
Thompson, a married father of two high school students, worked at the giant UnitedHealth Group for 20 years and became CEO of its insurance division in 2021.
The killing prompted some to express their resentment toward America’s health insurers, with Mangione serving as a proxy for frustrations over denied coverage and hefty medical bills. It also sent shockwaves through the corporate world, alarming executives who say they have received an uptick in threats.
