Latest murder of UnitedHealthcare CEO: suspect Luigi Mangione to fight extradition to New York
The suspect in the murder of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson plans to challenge his extradition from Pennsylvania to New York, where he faces a second-degree murder charge in connection with last week’s high-profile fatal shooting.
The suspect, Luigi Mangione, 26, was arrested Monday and charged in Pennsylvania with alleged possession of an untraceable “ghost” weapon.
“He has constitutional rights and this is what he is doing” in challenging the interstate transfer, his lawyer, Thomas Dickey, told reporters in Pennsylvania.
A person walks in front of the Blair County Courthouse, where Luigi Mangione, 26, suspect in the New York City killing of UnitedHealth Executive Brian Thompson, attends an extradition hearing in Hollidaysburg, Pennsylvania, December 10, 2024 .
Eduardo Munoz/Reuters
He also plans to plead not guilty to the charges against him in Blair County, Pa., Dickey said. A Pennsylvania judge ordered Mangione, 26, held without bail on Tuesday.
The Manhattan district attorney’s office said it would seek a warrant from the governor to try to obtain Mangione’s extradition. New York Gov. Kathy Hochul said in a statement that she would sign a request for a governor’s warrant “to ensure that this individual is brought to justice and held accountable.”
Luigi Mangione, 26, suspect in the New York City murder of UnitedHealthcare executive Brian Thompson, is escorted after an extradition hearing at the Blair County Courthouse in Hollidaysburg, Pennsylvania, December 10, 2024.
Eduardo Munoz/Reuters
Dickey said he anticipated Mangione would plead not guilty to the second-degree murder charge in New York.
The lawyer said he had limited information about the facts of the New York murder case, but he acknowledged that Mangione was “charged with some serious matters.” He added that Mangione is “taking it the best he can.”
A view of the exterior of SCI Huntingdon where Luigi Mangione, 26, is being held after being apprehended as a suspect in the murder of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thomas in Huntingdon, Pennsylvania on December 10, 2024.
Matthew Hatcher/Reuters
Mangione’s defense was given 14 days Tuesday to formally challenge the extradition. The suspect was shackled at the waist and ankles during the hearing at the Blair County Courthouse in Hollidaysburg, Pennsylvania.
The judge ordered Mangione held without bail and remanded him to the State Correctional Institution in Huntingdon, Pennsylvania, where he is being held. listed as detained QQ7787.
ABC News’ Peter Charalambous and Josh Margolin contributed to this report.
