Luigi Mangione, a 26-year-old suspect in the murder of UnitedHealth executive Brian Thompson, has retained prominent attorney Karen Friedman Agnifilo to represent him on New York charges. Agnifilo, who previously served as the chief assistant district attorney in the Manhattan District Attorney’s Office, will not be making any statements at this time.
Mangione was arrested in Altoona, Pennsylvania, after a dayslong manhunt, and was found eating at a McDonald’s restaurant with a backpack containing evidence linking him to the shooting. He has been charged in New York with one count of murder, three counts of criminal possession of a weapon, and one count of possession of a forged instrument. In Pennsylvania, he has been arraigned on two felony charges and three misdemeanor charges.
Mangione is currently jailed in his own cell at the Huntingdon State Correctional Institution and is fighting extradition to New York. A spokesperson for the Pennsylvania Department of Corrections said he does not have access to a television, is not interacting with other inmates, and eats in his cell.
Online fundraisers have surfaced in support of Mangione, with at least three campaigns appearing on GoFundMe before being removed. GoFundMe has refunded donors who contributed to the campaigns, citing its Terms of Service which prohibits fundraisers for the legal defense of violent crimes. Another crowdfunding platform, GiveSendGo, has not removed a fundraiser for Mangione’s legal defense, which has raised over $94,000 as of Saturday morning.
Mangione’s family could not be reached for comment on Saturday, and it is unclear if any of the donations will help pay his legal fees. His attorney, Thomas Dickey, has said that he has not seen evidence linking his client to the killing and that Mangione will plead not guilty to the charges in both states.
