Luigi Mangione pleads guilty to federal charges in the killing of UnitedHealthcare's CEO

Luigi Mangione pleaded guilty Friday to two federal stalking charges in the killing of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson, with the victim's family seated in the Manhattan courtroom.

The 28-year-old revealed during his allocution that he had posed as a potential investor to confirm the location of the investors conference, allowing him to track Thompson's movements. He told the judge he was motivated to kill the executive because of his own experience with the healthcare system as a patient with a back injury.

The counts, interstate stalking resulting in death and stalking through use of interstate facilities resulting in death, each carry a maximum sentence of life in prison. Sentencing is set for December 18.

Thompson's mother, Pat, sat in the front row alongside other relatives and UnitedHealthcare executives. The family has largely stayed out of public view since the December 2024 shooting outside a Manhattan hotel.

The plea comes weeks before Mangione's state trial on second-degree murder and firearms charges, expected to begin early next month. A federal count carrying a possible death sentence was dismissed earlier this year.

Mangione was arrested at a Pennsylvania McDonald's five days after the shooting. Authorities recovered a notebook detailing grievances against the insurance industry, and found shell casings at the scene bearing the words "delay," "deny" and "depose."