Luigi Mangione on Thursday was greeted by throngs of supporters at court as he agreed to be extradited to New York to face murder charges in connection with the killing of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson.
Crowds in support of Mangione had gathered outside the Blair County courthouse in Hollidaysburg, Pennsylvania where the 26-year-old appeared for two separate proceedings: one relating to firearms and forgery charges in Pennsylvania, and the other relating to his extradition to New York.
He is now expected to be immediately taken to New York where he faces 11 counts in connection with Thompson’s death, including first-degree murder in furtherance of terrorism.
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Demonstrators outside the court ahead of Mangione’s arrival carried signs reading “Free Luigi” and “Murder for Profit is Terrorism,” according to ABC News.
One person carried a sign emblazoned with the words “Deny, Defend, Depose,” referencing words written on ammunition found at the scene of Thompson’s shooting death in Manhattan.
In an apparent reference to the terror charges Mangione is facing, another person carried a sign reading “Health Insurance Practices Terrorize People,” according to the New York Post.
“I think our country is broken and the people don’t care about the working class,” Adam Giesseman, a 33-year-old protester from Piqua, Ohio, told the Post. “If what is alleged is true, he should suffer the consequences of what is handed to him, but I’m glad he brought attention to the fact that our country is broken.”
Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg on Tuesday called Thompson’s killing a “frightening, well-planned, targeted murder that was intended to cause shock, attention and intimidation,” adding that it was a crime “intended to evoke terror.”
Mangione would face a mandatory sentence of life without the possibility of parole if convicted on all counts. On Wednesday, media reports claimed that Mangione will also face federal charges in addition to the state murder indictment. The federal case—which is being brought by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York—could potentially allow prosecutors to seek the death penalty, according to The New York Times.
He could be arraigned in New York state court as early as Thursday afternoon or Friday.
Authorities claim Mangione was the masked gunman who approached Thompson from behind and opened fire outside the Hilton Hotel in Midtown on December 4. Prosecutors claim Mangione fled the scene on an e-bike and evaded capture for five days until he was spotted at a McDonald’s in Altoona, Pennsylvania.
Police say he was found at the time of his arrest with a gun partly made with a 3D printer, a silencer, and a fake ID which he allegedly used to check into a hostel in New York before the shooting. He was also allegedly carrying a brief manifesto mentioning UnitedHealthcare.
The killing triggered a public outpouring of online rage against the health insurance industry in general and even praise for the crime itself. A fundraiser for Mangione’s legal defense has raised over $150,000.
He’s also received other forms of support during his brief stint at a state prison in Huntingdon, Pennsylvania, following his arrest. As of Tuesday, 158 deposits had been made into his commissary account—which inmates can use to buy items like food and toiletries—and he’d received over 50 letters, Pennsylvania Department of Corrections Spokesperson Maria Bivens told CNN.
