NEW YORK (1010 WINS) – U.S. Attorney General Pamela Bondi directed federal prosecutors to seek the death penalty against Luigi Mangione, the man accused of fatally shooting UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson outside the New York Hilton in Midtown in December.
In a press release posted to the Department of Justice website, Bondi described the murder as “an act of political violence” against an executive at the nation’s biggest health insurer.
Bondi directed acting U.S. Attorney Matthew Podolsky to seek the death penalty in the case.
“Luigi Mangione’s murder of Brian Thompson — an innocent man and father of two young children — was a premeditated, cold-blooded assassination that shocked America,” Bondi said in a statement.
“After careful consideration, I have directed federal prosecutors to seek the death penalty in this case as we carry out President Trump’s agenda to stop violent crime and Make America Safe Again,” she continued.
Mangione faces federal charges of stalking and murder, which makes him eligible for the death penalty if convicted.
The federal case is proceeding on parallel tracks with a state case out of the Manhattan D.A.’s Office, which charged him with murder as an act of terrorism. That charge carries a possible life sentence without parole, since New York doesn’t have the death penalty.
Mangione has been held at the Metropolitan Detention Center, a federal jail in Brooklyn, since his arrest in the Dec. 4 shooting.
The Trump administration lifted a moratorium on federal executions earlier this year, when Bondi signaled her support for reviving the death penalty and continuing federal executions.
A message seeking comment was left for a spokesperson for Mangione’s lawyers.
Mangione's case has sparked a national debate about health insurance coverage in America. A poll in January found 81% of college students had an "extremely" or "somewhat" favorable view of Mangione, with nearly half believing the crime was justified.
According to prosecutors, 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 U.S., though the company 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.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.