Luigi Mangione pleaded guilty Friday to federal stalking charges in the 2024 killing of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson, telling the court, “I knew what I was doing,” as his attorneys separately moved to dismiss remaining state charges ahead of a Sept. 8 murder trial.
By yourNEWS Media Newsroom
Luigi Mangione pleaded guilty Friday to federal stalking charges arising from the fatal shooting of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson, while his defense team simultaneously opened a new legal front by asking a New York court to dismiss the remaining state prosecution.
Mangione acknowledged responsibility during his federal court appearance, telling the court, “I knew what I was doing.”
U.S. District Judge Margaret Garnett accepted the plea.
Mangione could face life in prison on the federal charges.
The federal plea marks a major development in a case that has proceeded on parallel federal and state tracks since Thompson was shot outside a Midtown Manhattan hotel in December 2024.
Thompson, 50, had arrived shortly before 7 a.m. for a conference at the Hilton when he was attacked.
Police said Mangione had been waiting for Thompson to arrive.
Surveillance footage showed Mangione positioning himself as Thompson approached the Manhattan Hilton before firing multiple rounds.
Thompson was struck in the chest and stumbled after the initial gunfire. Mangione then fired again, according to the account of the attack.
Thompson was transported to Mount Sinai Hospital, where he was pronounced dead.
Authorities characterized the killing as targeted.
Investigators also focused on Mangione’s writings and statements concerning the health insurance industry. He had expressed anti-capitalist views and criticized what he viewed as excessive profits in the healthcare sector.
The state prosecution initially included terrorism-related allegations.
In December 2024, a New York grand jury indicted Mangione on 11 criminal counts, including first-degree murder in furtherance of terrorism.
Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg said the New York State Supreme Court indictment included one count of first-degree murder, two counts of second-degree murder, two counts of second-degree criminal possession of a weapon, four counts of third-degree criminal possession of a weapon, one count of fourth-degree criminal possession of a weapon and one count of second-degree criminal possession of a forged instrument.
The first-degree and second-degree murder charges were classified as Class A-I felonies.
The second-degree weapons counts were Class C felonies, the third-degree weapons counts and forged-instrument charge were Class D felonies, and the fourth-degree weapons count was classified as a Class E felony.
The terrorism component of the state case has since been narrowed.
A New York judge last year dismissed terrorism charges against Mangione, and on Tuesday the judge dismissed two terrorism-related counts after finding insufficient evidence to sustain them.
The remaining state murder case is scheduled for trial Sept. 8.
Mangione’s defense is now seeking to prevent that trial from occurring by asking the state court to dismiss the remaining charges following his federal guilty plea.
The filing adds a significant legal question to the case: whether the state prosecution can or should continue after Mangione has admitted guilt to federal offenses arising from the same killing.
Friday’s plea does not itself automatically terminate the separate New York case.
Federal and state prosecutions are distinct proceedings, and Mangione remains subject to the state charges unless the judge grants the defense motion or prosecutors otherwise alter the case.
For now, the federal proceeding has moved decisively toward sentencing, while the state case remains scheduled to begin in less than a month.
Mangione’s statement in court — “I knew what I was doing” — marked his clearest formal acknowledgment yet of responsibility in the federal prosecution surrounding Thompson’s death.
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