Luigi Mangione pleads guilty to stalking charges in federal court

Luigi Mangione pleaded guilty to federal stalking charges on Friday related to the 2024 killing of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson. Mangione will appear in court again next month for eight state charges, including second-degree murder. Mangione’s lawyers announced they were seeking to have the state murder case thrown out on double jeopardy grounds.

Defense lawyer Karen Friedman told reporters outside the court that her client shouldn’t face two prosecutions over a single event. Both the federal and state cases could lead to a life prison sentence. Earlier this year, a federal judge tossed out additional charges that could have resulted in the death penalty for Mangione. The 28-year-old previously pleaded not guilty to all eight of the state charges.

As he prepared to enter the plea, Mangione acknowledged shooting Thompson after trailing him to an investor conference in Manhattan, an Associated Press reporter said. He told the court that he posed as an investor at a multibillion-dollar firm, asking Thompson for information about the conference. As Mangione described shooting Thompson, the CEO’s widow Paulette cried, the reporter noted. Mangione made no sentencing deal with federal prosecutors, although a letter was filed suggesting a sentence of 24 to 30 years in prison, to be decided on Dec. 18, according to USA Today. Previously, Mangione pleaded not guilty to all charges.

Surveillance footage of the killing showed a masked gunman shooting the CEO in the back, according to NYC police. Police sources told ABC News that “defend,” “deny,” and “depose” were written on the shell casings found at the scene. Mangione, the son of a wealthy Maryland family, previously characterized health insurers as greedy, authorities said.

State prosecutors objected to the possibility of a guilty plea in the federal case wiping out the state case. Under New York law, a state prosecution may be barred if the federal case is resolved first.