UnitedHealthcare CEO killing latest: Luigi Mangione may waive extradition, DA says

(NEW YORK) — Luigi Mangione, the suspect accused of gunning down UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson, may waive extradition to New York City as early as Tuesday, Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg said on Friday.

“Indications are that the defendant may waive, but that waiver is not complete until a court proceeding,” Bragg said.

The earliest a court proceeding could be scheduled in Pennsylvania is Tuesday, Bragg said.

“So until that time, we are going to continue to press forward on parallel paths,” he said. “We will be ready, whether he is going to waive extradition or whether he is going to contest extradition.”

Prosecutors at the Manhattan District Attorney’s Office have begun presenting evidence to a grand jury as they work to secure an indictment against Mangione, sources told ABC News.

The DA’s office declined to comment due to the secrecy surrounding grand jury matters.

Mangione was apprehended in Altoona, Pennsylvania, on Monday after nearly one week on the run following the Dec. 4 slaying.

Mangione, 26, is in custody at a Pennsylvania state prison after a judge denied bail on Tuesday.

In Pennsylvania, Mangione faces charges including allegedly possessing an untraceable ghost gun. In New York, he faces charges including second-degree murder.

New York City Mayor Eric Adams said Friday he believes Mangione was radicalized while he attended the University of Pennsylvania.

“Here you have a young man who went to an Ivy League school, came from an affluent background and family, had all the things that many Americans would like to have. But he found himself hating corporations and hating other things,” Adams said on GMGT Live’s “The Reset Talk Show.” “We’re radicalizing our children in general, but specifically on these Ivy League campuses.”

Mangione’s writings, obtained by ABC News, claimed that the U.S. has the most expensive health care system in the world, but ranks about No. 42 in life expectancy. He said UnitedHealthcare “has grown and grown, but as our life expectancy? No the reality is, these [indecipherable] have simply gotten too powerful, and they continue to abuse our country for immense profit.”

“I do apologize for any strife of traumas but it had to be done,” he allegedly wrote. “Frankly, these parasites simply had it coming.”

UnitedHealthcare told ABC News that Mangione was not a member of the insurer.

Thompson’s murder ignited online anger at the health insurance industry and some people online have celebrated Mangione. Supporters of Mangione have donating money to a defense fund established for him, leaving law enforcement officials worried Mangione is being turned into a martyr.

Adams attributed the support Mangione is receiving to “anger and pain.”

“People know how challenging it is navigating our health care system on many levels, the cost of health care system. Some of the denials, some of the of illnesses that are not covered. And all across America, people have experienced that disappointment. And so you’re seeing a response to that,” Adams said. “And we can’t send a signal that if you’re angry over something, if you’re angry because you got a parking ticket, you respond with violence.”

Three shell casings recovered outside the Midtown Manhattan hotel where Thompson was fatally shot match the gun allegedly found on Mangione when he was arrested, police announced Wednesday.

Fingerprints recovered from a water bottle and a Kind bar near the crime scene have also been matched to Mangione, police said.

Authorities are still looking to access a phone recovered by police in an alley following the shooting that is believed to be linked to the suspect, sources said Thursday. Police have obtained a search warrant for the phone, sources said.

Copyright © 2024, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.