Luigi Mangione latest: Top New York attorney tapped by defense as new details emerge on how suspect fled to Pennsylvania
Karen Friedman Agnifilo to represent suspect as he faces second-degree murder charge while donations pour into GiveSendGo fundraiser and GoFundMe reportedly takes down another
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A top New York City attorney has been hired to represent Luigi Mangione in the murder of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson.
Karen Friedman Agnifilo will be representing Mangione in New York. The suspect is also facing charges in Pennsylvania and is currently fighting extradition to New York, CNN reported. Police sources believe Mangione took a train to Pennsylvania, where he was captured on Monday.
Agnifilo has worked in private practice since 2021 and has experience in New York City’s criminal justice system. She spent seven years as the chief assistant district attorney in the Manhattan District Attorney’s Office.
Mangione’s supporters are donating thousands of dollars for “defense funds” that have been established for him. Amid fears the shooting suspect is being turned into a martyr, several fundraisers have been set up for him online, with one created by anonymous group ‘The December 4th Legal Committee’ surpassing more than $90,000 in donations on the crowdfunding website GiveSendGo by Saturday.
The group’s name is an apparent reference to the day the 26-year-old allegedly gunned down Mr Thompson in Midtown Manhattan.
Other campaigns soliciting donations for Mangione’s defense have been taken down by sites, such as GoFundMe, reported ABC News.
Timeline of the manhunt
December 4: The suspect set off from an Upper West Side hostel before dawn. He was seen on surveillance video walking back and forth at 54th Street and Sixth Avenue, near the Hilton Hotel where the UnitedHealthcare Group was holding its conference. After opening fire, the suspect fled by bike through Central Park before getting into a cab and was later spotted at a bus station. A manhunt ensued.
December 5: Investigators revealed a cryptic message carved onto the shell casings: “delay,” “deny” and “depose.” NYPD also released images of the suspect.
December 6: Police announce they believe the suspect has left New York City, expanding the desperate search. A backpack, thought to belong to the suspect, was found in Central Park and sent in for forensic testing. The now-viral “flirtatious” photo of the suspect speaking to a hostel worker was released.
December 7: NYPD releases another photo of the suspect, this time in the back of a taxi. The FBI also joined the hunt for the suspect, offering a $50,000 reward for information.
December 8: Although no leads on the suspect’s whereabouts were made public, investigators revealed the contents of the backpack included Monopoly money and a Tommy Hilfiger jacket.
December 9: A private service for Brian Thompson was held. Also that day, a McDonald’s employee in Altoona, Pennsylvania tipped recognized Mangione from the photos circulated by police. He was arrested in Pennsylvania on gun charges and hours later faced a murder charge in New York.
Health insurance stocks have tumbled in days since United Healthcare CEO murder
The fallout from the fatal shooting of United Healthcare CEO Brain Thompson has led to a tumble in stock values for major insurance companies.
Thompson was shot and killed by a masked gunman, suspected to be 26-year-old Luigi Mangione a week ago in what is believed to be a targeted attack apparently based in part on grievances with the U.S. health insurance system.
The shocking nature of the shooting has shined a glaring spotlight on the worst parts of health insurance companies’ policies leading to a small anti-health insurance company movement online.
Read the full story.
Insurance stocks have tumbled in days after United Healthcare CEO murder
Fatal shooting has sparked an increase in people sharing negative experiences with health insurance companies
Police revealing alleged shooter may have boarded train to Pennsylvania
Police previously thought that the suspect boarded a bus to Pennsylvania, where he was eventually caught on Monday. Cops said they believed the shooter had stopped off at different locations around the state.
But according to the New York Post, that’s no longer the case.
Investigators said they thought the suspect had taken a bus because he was seen on surveillance video at the George Washington Bridge bus station. Now, they think he took the subway from the bus station to Penn Station and bought a train ticket to Pennsylvania before he was caught, CBS News and ABC News reported, citing police sources.
Watch: Luigi Mangione’s mugshot emblazoned on stickers and t-shirts after murder charge
Alleged shooter’s mom was reportedly contacted by FBI before his arrest
Kathleen Mangione was contacted by federal investigators the night before her son was arrested and told them he looked like the person in the photos released by the New York City Police Department, according to the NY Post.
The FBI had received a tip from San Francisco police after an official in California said he recognized the man in the pictures and tipped off federal authorities. Members of the Joint Violent Crimes Task Force then spoke to Mangione’s mother about her son, asking her about a missing person’s report her family had filed in November.
According to The Post, the man’s mother wasn’t completely confident that was actually her son in the images.
Poll: Young Americans favor Luigi Mangione over UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson
A poll released on Friday reveals that young Americans are more likely to favor the suspected killer over his alleged victim.
The Center for Strategic Politics reported that out of 455 adults surveyed on December 11, 31 percent of adults under 45 were nearly four times as likely to view Mangione favorably. That’s compared to only 16 percent who saw Brian Thompson favorably.
Who is Karen Friedman Agnifilo?
Luigi Mangione has retained a top New York attorney for his legal defense in connection with the shooting of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson.
The Independent understands that Karen Friedman Agnifilo has been officially retained to represent Mangione, 26, in New York, after the executive, 50, was gunned down outside the New York Hilton in Midtown Manhattan on 4 December.
Here, The Independent takes a look at what we know about Ms Agnifilo:
Who is Karen Friedman Agnifilo? Top New York attorney Luigi Mangione retained
Mangione faces second-degree murder charge over shooting of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson
A Boston crowd cheered when a DJ put up a picture of Luigi Mangione
A group of partygoers in Boston reportedly cheered when a DJ put a photo of Luigi Mangione on a big screen.
See the footage below.
WATCH: UnitedHealthcare CEO killing: Mounting evidence piling up
‘Wanted’ posters of healthcare execs crop up in Manhattan after Brian Thompson murder
The New York Police Department issued a bulletin on Tuesday warning that health insurance executives might be at risk after “wanted” posters featuring their images and salaries appeared around Manhattan.
The bulletin comes in the wake of the fatal shooting of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson last week.
The NYPD suggested that Luigi Mangione, the 24-year-old man arrested on suspicion of shooting Thompson, may be viewed as a “martyr” by some, and could inspire other attacks.
The bulletin notes that the shooter’s actions could have the “capability to inspire a variety of extremists and grievance-driven malicious actors to violence,” which was first reported by ABC News.
Graig Graziosi has the full story.
NYPD issues warning over healthcare CEO ‘wanted’ posters in Manhattan
Officials fear Luigi Mangione, the suspected gunman in the attack on Thompson, might be viewed as a ‘martyr’ and could inspire other attacks