Luigi Mangione is expected to plead guilty Friday in his federal case tied to his alleged execution of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson — in an apparent bid to dodge a life sentence, sources confirmed to the Post.
The 28-year-old accused killer — who is set to appear at a morning hearing in Manhattan federal court — is charged in the federal case with two counts of stalking resulting in death stemming from his alleged December 2024 cold-blooded murder of the powerful executive on a Manhattan sidewalk.
Mangione would still likely face a potential life sentence if he were to plead guilty in federal court, but would hope that US District Judge Margaret Garnett doles out a lesser sentence, according to sources familiar with the matter.
The sources cautioned that Mangione could still decide against copping the plea at any moment before or even during Friday’s court appearance.
Such a deal could end up crippling a separate state case — where a trial is set to start on Sept. 8 — because of New York’s rules against double jeopardy, or being tried twice for the same crime.
The Manhattan District Attorney’s Office — which has claimed “primary jurisdiction” in the case because it charged Mangione with the murder first — could also still push to take Mangione to trial if it disapproves of the terms of any plea deal.
The preppy University of Pennsylvania grad is charged in the federal case with two counts of stalking resulting in death. Two other counts, including a death-penalty-eligible count of murder through use of a firearm, were tossed, with a judge citing “legal infirmities.”
The scion of a wealthy Maryland family led authorities on a dramatic five-day manhunt before local cops in Altoona, Pa. finally nabbed him while he munched on breakfast at a local McDonald’s.
Prosecutors say he plotted the shocking killing to make a violent political statement, leaving behind bullet casings at the crime scene with the words “delay” and “deny” etched into them — echoing a phrase insurers allegedly use to describe dodging paying out claims.
The federal trial, if a plea is not worked out, is tentatively scheduled for early 2027.
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