Topline
A grand jury in Manhattan indicted Luigi Mangione on first-degree murder and other charges for allegedly killing UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson, authorities said Tuesday, more than a week after the 26-year-old was taken into custody following a dayslong manhunt.
Suspected shooter Luigi Mangione is led from the Blair County Courthouse after an extradition … [+]
Key Facts
Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg announced Mangione was charged with murder in the first degree, one charge of second-degree murder as an act of terrorism, one charge of second-degree murder because the killing was intentional and a number of other weapons charges.
Mangione was arrested in Altoona, Pennsylvania, on Dec. 9 after he was recognized in a McDonald’s and police said they found him with a gun and silencer similar to the ones believed to be used to kill Thompson, a handwritten “manifesto” and a notebook with plans for the shooting.
He was charged with weapons-related crimes in Pennsylvania, and charged later Monday with second-degree murder, three weapons possession-related charges and one forgery charge in Manhattan state court, according to court records.
Bragg said Tuesday there are indications Mangione may waive extradition—a change in strategy as his Pennsylvania lawyer said last week they would fight extradition.
It’s unclear how Mangione will plead in the case.
This story is breaking and will be updated.
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Crucial Quote
“This was a frightening, well-planned, targeted murder that was intended to cause shock and attention and intimidation,” Bragg said Tuesday.
Did Police Speak To Luigi Mangione’s Mother?
New York Police Chief of Detectives Joseph Kenny confirmed Tuesday law enforcement officials spoke to Mangione’s mother, Kathleen Mangione, the night before her son was arrested. Kenny said the San Francisco Police Department informed New York police that Mangione—whose mother had reported him missing to the SFPD weeks earlier—resembled the suspect about 45 hours after the shooting. When the NYPD was vetting the tip, they spoke to Mangione’s mother on Dec. 7, and she “didn’t indicate that it was her son in the photograph,” but said, “it might be something she could see him doing,” according to Kenny.
Key Background
Thompson, 50, was the CEO of UnitedHealthcare. Police say he was shot from behind just before 7 a.m. on Dec. 4 outside of the New York Hilton Midtown—where UnitedHealth Group was planning to hold an investors’ meeting—and was hit in the back and right calf, after which the suspect fled the area on foot and on an electric bike. Police called it “a brazen targeted attack” and searched throughout New York City, but eventually said they believed the suspect may have left the state by bus. Officials released several photos of the suspected shooter, though his face was largely covered by a mask and hood in most of them. When police were called to the Pennsylvania McDonald’s Mangione was eventually arrested at, they asked him if he was in New York recently and he went quiet and began to shake, according to a description of his arrest. Pennsylvania officials have said they believe Mangione traveled throughout the state from Pittsburgh to Philadelphia while he was on the run, and are still seeking information about what he did and where he went.
Tangent
Mangione hired Karen Friedman Agnifilo as his attorney in New York, ABC News reported. Agnifilo worked in the Manhattan DA’s office for 25 years and was second in command there for nearly eight years. In Pennsylvania, he is being represented by Thomas Dickey.
What Was Luigi Mangione’s Motive?
Mangione was never a client of UnitedHealthcare, according to the company, but police said the writings found on him indicated he had “some ill will toward corporate America.” The writing also reportedly said “I do apologize for any strife or traumas but it had to be done. Frankly, these parasites simply had it coming.” Officers also found the words “deny,” “defend” and “depose” on bullet casings at the scene, which echo a phrase commonly used to criticize tactics insurance companies use to reject claims. Mangione had documented his experience with chronic back pain online through social media, and read books about spinal pain, according to a now-private Goodreads account believed to belong to him. On that account, he also gave the Unabomber’s manifesto a four-star review in which he wrote, “it’s easy to quickly and thoughtless write this off as the manifesto of a lunatic, in order to avoid facing some of the uncomfortable problems it identifies.” Mangione also quoted another person’s take on the manifesto in his review, writing: “violence is necessary to survive.”
What Evidence Do Police Say They Have Against Mangione?
It’s not clear what plea Mangione will enter, but investigators have said the writings found on Mangione at the time of his arrest were “written admissions of the crime,” and that he was found “in possession of the same New Jersey fake identification that was used” by the suspected gunman to check into a hostel in New York City. NYPD Police Commissioner Jessica Tisch also told “Good Morning America” the gun that was on Mangione when he was taken in “looks very similar” to the gun used in the killing and had “a similar suppressor.” The first forensic link tying Mangione to the crime was announced by Tisch on Wednesday, when she said fingerprints on a water bottle and a protein bar found near the crime scene matched Mangione’s, the BBC reported. In a CNN interview Wednesday, Mangione’s lawyer Thomas Dickey questioned the evidence police had—specifically the ballistics and fingerprint evidence—saying those two forms of evidence have “come under some criticism in the past, relative to their credibility, their truthfulness, their accuracy.”
Further Reading
