As many legal experts had been speculating would happen, Luigi Mangione pleaded guilty to federal stalking charges Friday morning in a Manhattan federal courthouse. Those charges were related to the cold-blooded assassination of United HealthCare CEO Brian Thompson on a New York City street back in December of 2024.
Friday was the first time Thompson's family had appeared at a hearing, signaling that a guilty plea was forthcoming. There had been rumors of a plea bargain, but that did not turn out to be the case.
Here's a bit of the courtroom drama.
Luigi Mangione admitted to the cold-blooded killing of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson, pleading guilty Friday to federal stalking charges, as the slain executive’s widow cried silently in the courtroom gallery.
Mangione, 28, drew glares from Thompson’s relatives as he walked into the Manhattan federal courtroom with his hands uncuffed behind his back, but his ankles shackled, wearing a beige prison jumpsuit with a long-sleeved white shirt rolled up to his elbows.
Several of Thompson’s relatives, including his widow, sat in the second row of the courtroom, eyed the accused killer as he strolled in, took a seat and intently read, and then signed, a document with lawyers.
“Mr. Mangione is prepared to plead guilty to the indictment at this time,” defense attorney Karen Agnifilo told the judge.
Luigi Mangione pleads guilty in killing of UnitedHealthcare boss Brian Thompson https://t.co/7p9ATJL4sQ pic.twitter.com/V6ILTX2Za3
— New York Post (@nypost) August 14, 2026
Mangione had the opportunity to address the court, and he used that time to explain his version of events from December 4, 2024.
"After years of enduring severe pain from a broken back…I learned UnitedHealthcare will hold an investor’s conference,” he began. He then explained that he searched for the location of the investor conference being attended by Thompson.
READ MORE: Luigi Mangione Case Takes a Shocking Turn
According to Mangione, he had "emailed UnitedHealthcare leadership while posing as an investor, requested details on the conference and received an immediate response."
“Before traveling to New York, I used a 3D printer to make a gun,” he admitted. "On the morning of Dec. 4, 2024, I shot Mr. Thompson in Manhattan, and he died. When I did so, I understood my actions put him in … I knew what I was doing was illegal."
At the start of the proceedings, U.S. Judge Margaret Garnett told Mangione that he could face a maximum sentence of life in federal prison if he changed his plea from not guilty to guilty, but said she would not be handing down a sentence at the Friday hearing.
Mangione will next face a trial in a New York state court on second-degree murder, weapons, and forgery charges. Jury selection is scheduled to begin September 8.
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