Luigi Mangione expected to plead guilty in federal stalking case

Luigi Mangione is expected to plead guilty Friday in his federal criminal case, where he is charged with stalking in connection with the alleged killing of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson on a midtown Manhattan street in 2024, The New York Times reported Thursday, citing sources.

Mangione is scheduled to appear in U.S. District Court in Manhattan on Friday for a pretrial conference with Judge Margaret Garnett. The conference was requested in a joint court filing on Tuesday by prosecutors and defense lawyers.

He faces separate charges in New York state court for murdering Thompson and other counts.

If Mangione does plead guilty in the federal case, his attorneys are expected to argue that New York's double jeopardy law bars his prosecution for murder in the state case, The Times noted.

A spokesman for the Manhattan U.S. Attorney's Office declined to comment to CNBC when asked about a potential plea. CNBC has also requested comment from a spokeswoman for Mangione's defense team.

Thompson, 50, was fatally shot outside the Hilton Hotel on Sixth Avenue in December 2024 while walking to an investors' event for UnitedHealth Group, his company's parent. UnitedHealthcare is the largest health insurer in the United States.

Jury selection in the state murder case is scheduled to begin Sept. 8.

Mangione's federal trial is currently scheduled to start in January.

Garnett in January dismissed two federal criminal counts against Mangione, including one that accused him of murdering Thompson through the use of a firearm during alleged stalking. Mangione had faced the possibility of the death penalty if convicted on that count.

The two remaining federal counts – interstate stalking resulting in death and stalking through use of interstate facilities resulting in death – each carry a possible maximum sentence of life in prison.