Luigi Mangione is expected to plead guilty Friday to at least one federal stalking-related charge stemming from the 2024 killing of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson, potentially setting up a new legal fight over the separate state murder prosecution.
By yourNEWS Media Newsroom
Luigi Mangione is expected to enter a guilty plea Friday in his federal criminal case connected to the 2024 killing of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson, according to unnamed sources familiar with the matter.
Mangione, 28, is facing both federal and New York state prosecutions over Thompson’s killing and is scheduled to stand trial on the state charges in less than a month.
Sources told NBC News that Mangione is expected to plead guilty to one or both of the stalking-related counts in the federal case.
The anticipated plea is not final, however.
The sources cautioned that Mangione remains free to change his decision before or even during the court hearing. No plea becomes official unless Mangione personally enters it in court or formally accepts a plea agreement.
The expected development could have significant consequences for the parallel prosecution brought by New York authorities.
Mangione has pleaded not guilty to eight felony counts in the state case, including second-degree murder, and his trial is scheduled to begin within weeks.
If Mangione follows through with a federal guilty plea Friday, his attorneys are expected to ask the state court to dismiss some or potentially all of the charges pending against him in New York.
Such a request would place renewed attention on the relationship between the federal and state prosecutions, which arise from the same underlying 2024 killing but involve separate criminal charges.
The federal case includes stalking-related allegations tied to Thompson before his death.
Mangione’s expected plea would resolve at least part of the federal prosecution without a trial if accepted by the court, while leaving unresolved questions over whether the state murder case proceeds as currently scheduled.
The state prosecution remains active, and Mangione continues to maintain his not-guilty plea to all eight felony counts there unless and until the court takes further action.
A guilty plea in federal court would not automatically eliminate the state charges. His attorneys would have to separately persuade the state court to dismiss them.
Mangione could face life imprisonment if convicted.
Friday’s hearing is therefore positioned as a potentially pivotal moment in the overlapping federal and state cases, but the sources emphasized that the anticipated plea remains subject to change until Mangione formally makes his decision before the court.
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