Luigi Mangione pleaded guilty Friday to two federal stalking charges connected to the December 2024 killing of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson, ending the prospect of a federal trial in the closely watched case. Appearing before U.S. District Judge Margaret Garnett in Manhattan, Mangione admitted to one count of interstate stalking resulting in death and one count of stalking through interstate facilities resulting in death. Both charges carry maximum sentences of life imprisonment. Mangione is scheduled to be sentenced Dec. 18.
Federal prosecutors said Mangione traveled to New York after developing a plan to target Thompson because of his position at UnitedHealthcare. According to court filings summarized by the U.S. Attorney’s Office, Mangione arrived in the city more than a week before the killing and conducted surveillance around locations associated with Thompson and the company’s investor conference. On Dec. 4, 2024, Thompson was shot multiple times outside the conference venue in Midtown Manhattan. Mangione fled New York and was arrested five days later in Altoona, Pennsylvania, where authorities recovered a firearm, a false identification document and other evidence subsequently linked to the case. The federal prosecution had already narrowed earlier this year after the court dismissed separate murder and firearms counts, leaving the two stalking charges to proceed.
Mangione’s guilty plea also immediately affected the separate case against him in New York state court. His attorneys filed a motion Friday seeking dismissal of the remaining state charges, arguing that continuing the prosecution after the federal conviction would violate protections against double jeopardy. New York court records confirm the defense motion was filed Aug. 14, days after the court issued its latest order governing proceedings in the state case. The state prosecution stems from the same December 2024 killing and has proceeded separately from the federal case. Whether the guilty plea ultimately prevents that case from going forward will now be decided by the state court. Until then, Mangione remains in federal custody awaiting sentencing, where he faces the possibility of life imprisonment.
