‘Carefully targeted execution’ Luigi Mangione charged in New York court

Wearing shackles around his ankles, Luigi Mangione was indicted over the December 4 shooting of Mr Thompson, with charges including murder, stalking and firearms offences.

Luigi Mangione is escorted by police after landing in New York. Picture; AP.

Luigi Mangione has appeared in a New York court to face federal charges including murder over the death of UnitedHealth CEO Brian Thompson.

His arraignment took place hours after US television networks broadcast the 26-year-old’s dramatic extradition by plane and helicopter from Pennsylvania, where he was arrested at a McDonald’s restaurant last week.

Wearing shackles around his ankles, Mangione appeared before federal judge Katharine Parker, who read out the charges in the December 4 shooting of Mr Thompson, including murder, stalking and firearms offences, according to a court spokesperson.

James Dennehy of the FBI New York Field Office said Mangione’s alleged actions amounted to a “carefully premeditated and targeted execution.”

“This alleged plot demonstrates a cavalier attitude towards humanity – deeming murder an appropriate recourse to satiate personal grievances,” Mr Dennehy said.

If convicted, Mangione could face the death penalty or life in prison, the US Department of Justice said.

The fresh federal charges expand the case against the Ivy League graduate, coming two days after New York prosecutors filed separate state charges against him, including one count of murder in the second degree as “an act of terrorism.” His lawyer Karen Friedman Agnifilo told reporters she is seeking clarity on how simultaneous federal and state charges would work, calling the situation “highly unusual,” CNN reported.

After initially fighting the extradition, Mangione, 26, appeared in court in the Pennsylvania town of Hollidaysburg on Friday morning (AEDT) and agreed to be sent to New York, where Mr Thompson’s murder took place.

Federal investigators allege Mangione, who is accused of gunning down Mr Thompson outside a Midtown Manhattan hotel, methodically plotted the killing, surveilling the chief executive and taking measures to mask his identity before and after the shooting, according to a criminal complaint.

Luigi Mangione arrives in New York surrounded by a large group of police and the crooked mayor Eric Adams.

This is clearly a PR stunt by the state to intimidate those who’ve expressed support for Luigi and quell the rebellion he sparked.

It won’t work. pic.twitter.com/ChAjMNrVoW

— Power to the People ☭🕊 (@ProudSocialist) December 19, 2024

“The target is insurance” because “it checks every box,” an entry dated August 15 in Mangione’s notebook said, according to the complaint. The notebook also had an entry stating that the investor conference that Mr Thompson was heading to when he was killed was a “true windfall,” according to the complaint.

Highlighting the intense media attention the case has garnered, multiple television networks covered his trip from Pennsylvania to New York live.

Dressed in an orange prison jumpsuit and appearing calm, Mangione left the courthouse in a black SUV, escorted by several police vehicles.

After being flown by plane to an airport outside New York City, he boarded a helicopter to Manhattan, where television footage showed over a dozen officers, some in tactical gear, waiting to retrieve him.

LIVE: Luigi Mangione appears in New York court after transfer https://t.co/uU0iz754wb

— Reuters (@Reuters) December 19, 2024

Mangione was arrested in Altoona, Pennsylvania, on December 9, five days Mr Thompson was shot dead.

Thompson’s murder brought into focus widespread public anger against the US health care system and many social media users have since lionised Mangione.

Mangione made two brief court appearances in Pennsylvania Thursday (local time), according to US media. He waived a preliminary hearing on firearms and forgery charges and then agreed to be sent back to New York.

Outside the courthouse several protesters rallied in Mangione’s defence, holding posters that read “Free Luigi” and “Health insurance practices terrorise people!” Police say a “life-changing, life-altering” back injury may have motivated Mangione, although they added that there was “no indication” that he was ever a client of UnitedHealthcare.

Mangione was arrested following a tip from staff at the McDonald’s, where he was found wearing a mask and a beanie while using a laptop, and gave officers a fake ID, charging documents show.

When he was arrested, Mangione had a three-page handwritten text criticising the US health care system. As officers led him away, he shouted about an “insult to the American people.” Police have said that Mangione’s fingerprints matched those found near the crime scene, and that shell casings match the gun found on him when he was arrested.

Reports that the casings of the bullets allegedly fired by Mangione had the words “depose, deny, delay” inscribed on them prompted horror stories on social media about health insurers who use those very tactics to get out of paying for medical tests or cancer treatment.

Such fights with sick and ailing consumers are only one of the gripes many have with a health system that has also been criticised for mystery billing practices, opaque middlemen, confusing jargon and costly drugs.

AFP