NEW YORK– Luigi Mangione pleaded not guilty Monday in a New York court to lay out charges in the killing of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson earlier this month outside a Manhattan hotel.
State prosecutors say Mangione was found in possession of what appears to be the murder weaponand surveillance videos show a man matching his description before and after the attackincluding outside the Hilton where Thompson was shot in the back.
Mangione entered the court with his hands and feet shackled. He wore a brown sweater over a white collared shirt and chinos.
Among the long line of reporters waiting to enter the courtroom Monday morning were also members of the public – almost all young women – a few of whom told CBS News New York’s Ali Bauman that They were there to support Mangione.
A key difference between state and federal royalties is that the state supports the shooting was an act of terrorism. Additionally, the federal charges open the possibility of the death penalty.
Mangione, 26, is detained at the Brooklyn Metropolitan Detention Center after he appeared in federal court last week.
Luigi Mangione faces both state and federal charges
Mangione was flanked by heavily armed guards as he extradited from Pennsylvania to New York last Thursday. He later appeared in federal court on charges of stalking and murder.
In a statement, his attorney Karen Friedman Agnifilo called the federal charges “highly unusual,” saying they raise “serious constitutional and statutory concerns regarding double jeopardy.”
Federal complaint revealed Mangione was found with a notebook containing handwritten pages that “express hostility toward the health insurance industry and wealthy executives in particular.”
Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg said his office is working with the federal government and that even if the cases run concurrently, the trials will have to take place at different times. Acting U.S. Attorney Edward Kim said he expects the case to be reviewed first.
