Luigi Mangione Pleads Guilty in Federal Case, Admits to Killing UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson

Days after prosecutors and defense attorneys in Luigi Mangione’s federal case requested a joint hearing in Manhattan federal court that many speculated signaled a plea deal, the 28 year old pleaded guilty without a deal Friday morning.

As reported on Thursday’s AM Update, Mangione was facing two federal counts of stalking resulting in death over the December 2024 murder of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson. Prosecutors alleged Mangione shot and killed Thompson outside a midtown Manhattan hotel during the insurance giant’s investor conference.

Surveillance video showed a hooded gunman approach Thompson from behind as he left his hotel, which was not where the conference was being held, and shoot him in the back. The assassin fired a second shot as the insurance exec fell to the ground. The gunman then fled on a bicycle. Mangione was arrested five days later at a McDonald’s in Altoona, Pennsylvania.

A federal judge previously dismissed two other charges against Mangione, including the murder-through-use-of-a-firearm count that had made him eligible for the death penalty. Mangione had pleaded not guilty in both the federal case and a separate New York state prosecution for Thompson’s murder.

The Hearing

During Friday’s hearing, Judge Margaret Garnett asked Mangione if he wished to address the court, which was filled with members of his and Thompson’s family, after entering his plea. At that point, he read from a written statement how he planned and executed the assassination.

Mangione said he became disgruntled with the health insurance industry “after years of enduring severe pain from a broken back.” He explained that he learned UnitedHealthcare would be holding an investor’s conference, and, after failing to find details online, contacted the company while posing as an investor to get information.

He admitted he traveled to New York City with the intention of killing Thompson after using a 3D printer to make a gun. “On the morning of December 4, 2024, I shot Mr. Thompson in Manhattan,” Mangione said.

“I knew what I was doing,” he added.

What Happens Next

As expected, Mangione’s attorney, Karen Friedman Agnifilo, told reporters outside the courthouse that she has now filed a motion to dismiss the state-level charges against her client. Avoiding the state trial – set to begin next month – was speculated to be the driver behind the possible plea.

Manhattan prosecutors have already signaled they are prepared to push back against any federal resolution they believe could interfere with their prosecution. The District Attorney’s Office wrote to the state judge last month that New York retains what it calls “primary jurisdiction” because Mangione was first taken into custody on the authority of the state prosecution.

Prior to Mangione entering his guilty plea, AM Update spoke with The MK True Crime Show co-host Phil Holloway, who said the rumors about a plea deal were not surprising given how close the state trial is.

“[Mangione] attempted this apparently previously in the summer back in June, but I guess the parties were too far apart,” Holloway recalled. “Now that you get sort of to the foot of the cross, so to speak, with the state trial looming large, it’s not uncommon for these kinds of negotiations to rekindle, and sometimes with more earnest. And so this doesn’t really surprise me at all.”

Holloway foresaw Mangione’s defense raising the issue of double jeopardy as it relates to the state prosecution. “If Mangione were to plead guilty in federal court before the state case goes to trial, then he will argue that the state New York case is barred by double jeopardy under New York law,” he noted.

As Holloway explained, “New York has a different double jeopardy rule than would apply under the federal Constitution, and so if he has already been prosecuted and convicted by the federal system, New York law might very well bar a state prosecution.”

“He has a lot of interest to try to get the federal case completed,” Holloway added.

Given that the death penalty was already off the table, some have wondered what Mangione had to gain by pleading guilt. Holloway believes it has to do with the possibility of avoiding spending the rest of his life in prison.

“My answer to that question would be that finality and certainty and knowing what your fate is [can be] a big motivator for lots of criminal defendants. It takes the guesswork out of it. It takes the not knowing out of it,” Holloway said. “He knows that he’s going to be in prison for a very long time, regardless. But having some specific end in sight – whether it be 25 years, 35 years, or whatever – that is oftentimes a large motivator and can be very attractive for people, even when they are facing lengthy prison sentences.”

On Friday, Judge Garnett asked Mangione if he understood the maximum sentence he could receive is life in prison. He responded “yes.” She scheduled a sentencing hearing for December 18 and informed him she may or may not agree with the feds recommended sentencing range – but she said she will not allow him to withdraw his plea.

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