U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi says she has ordered federal prosecutors to seek the death penalty for Luigi Mangione, the man accused of killing UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson outside a New York City hotel in December of last year.
“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 issued by the Department of Justice on Tuesday.
“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,” Bondi continued.
Luigi Mangione pleads not guilty to murder of UnitedHealthcare CEO
It is the first time the Justice Department has sought to bring the death penalty since President Donald Trump returned to office in January with a vow to resume federal executions.
Mangione, a 26-year-old Ivy League graduate, faces separate federal and state murder charges for the killing, which rattled the business community while galvanizing health insurance critics.
The federal charges include murder through use of a firearm, which carries the possibility of the death penalty. The state charges carry a maximum punishment of life in prison. Mangione has pleaded not guilty to a state indictment and has not entered a plea to the federal charges.
This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.
— With files from The Associated Press