The grievance accuses Mangione of spending months planning an assault pushed by his contempt for the medical health insurance business and rich company executives
NEW YORK, USA – The suspect within the killing of UnitedHealth Group UNH.N govt Brian Thompson was charged with federal homicide and stalking crimes in a Manhattan courtroom on Thursday, December 19, alongside state homicide and terrorism expenses beforehand introduced by New York prosecutors.
Federal prosecutors in Manhattan have charged Luigi Mangione, 26, with the federal crime of homicide utilizing a firearm, two expenses of stalking and a cost of utilizing an unlawful gun silencer, in keeping with a legal grievance. The grievance accused Mangione of spending months planning an assault pushed by his contempt for the medical health insurance business and rich company executives.
Mangione was transferred into the custody of New York Metropolis police earlier on Thursday after he waived his proper to extradition proceedings at a courtroom listening to in Pennsylvania, the state the place he was arrested following a five-day manhunt. Handcuffed and in a shiny orange jumpsuit, he was escorted off a helicopter that landed in Decrease Manhattan by a big group of law enforcement officials, with New York Metropolis Mayor Eric Adams, who has known as Thompson’s killing an outrage, strolling just a few steps behind.
Based on the federal grievance, a pocket book discovered by Altoona, Pennsylvania, police in Mangione’s possession contained a number of handwritten pages that “specific hostility in the direction of the medical health insurance business and rich executives specifically.” A pocket book entry dated October 22 described an intent to “wack” the chief govt of an insurance coverage firm at its investor convention.
“This investor convention is a real windfall,” one entry discovered within the pocket book stated, in keeping with the grievance. “Most significantly – the message turns into self evident.”
Police additionally discovered a letter within the suspect’s possession addressed “To the Feds” that acknowledged: “I wasn’t working with anybody,” in keeping with the grievance.
“This was pretty trivial: Some elementary social engineering, primary CAD, a variety of endurance,” the letter stated, utilizing an abbreviation for computer-aided design.
Earlier this week, a grand jury in New York indicted Mangione on 11 counts of breaking state regulation, together with first-degree homicide and homicide as an act of terrorism, punishable by a most sentence of life in jail. Mangione has been in custody since his arrest and has not but entered a plea. His New York protection lawyer, Karen Friedman Agnifilo, has stated Mangione has been “overcharged” and that he would struggle the expenses in courtroom.
Mangione was arrested in Altoona on December 9, 5 days after Thompson was fatally shot outdoors a Manhattan resort earlier than an organization convention in what law-enforcement officers have known as a premeditated assassination.
Whereas the killing of Thompson has been broadly condemned, Mangione has been feted as a folks hero by some Individuals who decry the steep prices of healthcare and the facility held by insurance coverage firms to deny paying for some medical therapies.
Federal prosecutors may search the demise penalty for the federal homicide cost, a punishment that has been abolished in New York state for many years. If convicted of the silencer cost, Mangione faces a minimal sentence of 30 years in jail.
Prosecutors say Mangione “traveled in interstate commerce” by taking a bus from Atlanta to New York earlier than Thompson’s killing and in addition used his cellphone and the web to plan and perform his assault, and so have jurisdiction.
Mangione, modified from an orange jumpsuit he wore in Pennsylvania earlier on Thursday right into a blue sweater and beige slacks and together with his ankles in chains, made an preliminary courtroom look on the federal expenses earlier than US Justice of the Peace Decide Katharine Parker in Manhattan on Thursday afternoon.
He spoke briefly to verify to Parker that he understood his rights and the federal expenses. His lawyer instructed the courtroom that he wouldn’t search to be launched on bail, and Parker ordered that he stay in custody. He will likely be requested to enter a plea at a future listening to.
“The federal authorities’s reported resolution to pile on high of an already overcharged first-degree homicide and state terror case is extremely uncommon and raises severe constitutional and statutory double jeopardy issues,” Mangione’s lawyer Friedman Agnifilo stated in a press release earlier than Thursday’s listening to. “We’re able to struggle these expenses in no matter courtroom they’re introduced.”
In Pennsylvania, police stated Mangione had a self-assembled 9mm handgun in his backpack and a home made silencer when he was arrested after being noticed at a McDonald’s restaurant. The handgun resembled the weapon used to kill Thompson, CEO of UnitedHealthcare, the most important US well being insurer.
Mangione, a Maryland native who had lived in Hawaii, additionally had a number of pretend identification paperwork, together with a pretend New Jersey ID that was used to verify in to a Manhattan hostel days earlier than Thompson’s taking pictures, police stated.
In Pennsylvania, Mangione has been charged with forgery and illegally possessing an unlicensed gun.
On the Blair County, Pennsylvania, courthouse on Thursday morning, Mangione had a preliminary listening to for the Pennsylvania expenses, instantly adopted by a second on New York’s extradition request. A small crowd of supporters stood outdoors the courthouse, some waving indicators that condemned the medical health insurance business.
The Pennsylvania prosecutors instructed the courtroom that they had agreed to pause the Pennsylvania proceedings till after the conclusion of the New York circumstances.
Manhattan District Legal professional Alvin Bragg’s workplace is accusing Mangione of an act of terrorism below New York regulation as a result of Thompson’s killing was supposed to intimidate or coerce civilians or “affect the insurance policies of a unit of presidency.” – Rappler.com
