Accused killer Luigi Mangione could be extradited from Pennsylvania to New York City as early as Tuesday to face murder charges for gunning down UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson, Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg said Friday.
Bragg announced that Mangione, who has challenged extradition orders that seek to bring him back to the Big Apple, may abandon his fight during a court proceeding scheduled in Pennsylvania on Tuesday.
“Indications are that the defendant may waive, but that waiver is not complete until a court proceeding,” Bragg said during a public safety press conference in Times Square.
“Until that time, we’re going to continue to press forward on parallel paths, and we’ll be ready whether he’s going to waive extradition or contest extradition.”
Mangione — a 26-year-old University of Pennsylvania graduate — is accused of fatally shooting Thompson as the 50-year-old CEO walked to the Hilton hotel on Sixth Avenue, where UnitedHealthcare’s parent company was holding its annual investor conference on Dec. 4.
The alleged assassin led police on a five-day manhunt that ended when he was taken into custody at a Pennsylvania McDonald’s on Monday after an employee recognized him and called the police.
He was found in possession of a manifesto-type document that mentioned UnitedHealthcare and accused health insurance companies of corporate greed.
Mangione is facing murder charges and is being held without bail at the State Correctional Institution in Huntington, Pennsylvania on gun and forgery charges, of which he has pleaded not guilty.
Gov. Kathy Hochul said Thursday the accused gunman will be indicted “any day now” for the cold-blooding killing and a warrant for his extradition will be issued the moment he is charged.