Federal prosecutors are seeking the death penalty against the man accused of fatally shooting the UnitedHealthcare CEO, Brian Thompson, outside a Manhattan hotel on 4 December, the US attorney general, Pam Bondi, said on Tuesday.
Bondi said in a press release that she had “directed federal prosecutors to seek the death penalty” for Luigi Mangione, 26, because he allegedly committed “a premeditated, cold-blooded assassination that shocked America”. The move, Bondi notes, was in an effort to “carry out President Trump’s agenda to stop violent crime and Make America Safe Again”.
Prosecutors say Mangione had a spiral notebook in which he expressed hostility toward the health insurance industry and wealthy executives. UnitedHealthcare is the largest health insurer in the US, though the company has said Mangione was never a client.
Among the entries, the complaint said, was one from August 2024 that said “the target is insurance” because “it checks every box” and one from October that describes an intent to “wack” an insurance company CEO.
Mangione is facing both state and federal charges in connection with Thompson’s killing. He has pleaded not guilty to the state charges and has not entered a plea to the federal ones.
The maximum punishment on the state charges is life in prison.
Writings and words on bullets recovered from the scene reflected Mangione’s alleged hostility toward health insurers and corporate America.
The incident reignited debates about the United States’s healthcare system and incited controversy on social media, where many have expressed support for the Mangione. While private insurers report billions in profits every year, many patients and doctors are struggling to navigate a complex financial system to get what they need.
Others, including elected officials, decry what they see as glorifying violence and vigilantism.
Mangione and his attorneys have said they plan to avail themselves of about $775,000 in money raised on the GiveSendGo platform to aid his legal defense. The campaign was organized by a group named the December 4th Legal Committee.
The Associated Press contributed reporting
