Paulette Thompson, the widow of former UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson, was in court Friday as Luigi Mangione pleaded guilty to federal charges connected to the killing of her husband.
Thompson was seen leaving the courthouse after the hearing, where Mangione entered his plea to federal stalking charges in Manhattan.
Mangione, accused in the fatal attack on Brian Thompson, appeared before the court as the federal case moved forward with his guilty plea.
Judge Margaret Garnett asked Mangione whether he understood that the maximum possible sentence he faces is life in prison. “Yes,” he replied.
Paulette Thompson, widow of slain UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson, leaves Manhattan Criminal Court after Luigi Mangione pleaded guilty in the federal case tied to her husband’s killing. (Rashid Umar Abbasi for News Outlet)
Given a chance to speak in court, Mangione said he contacted UnitedHealthcare while pretending to be an investor so he could obtain more details about a scheduled conference.
“After years of enduring severe pain from a broken back…I learned UnitedHealthcare will hold an investor’s conference,” Mangione told the court.
Paulette Thompson, wife of late UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson, walks outside Manhattan Criminal Court after a hearing in the federal murder trial of Luigi Mangione, who is charged in Thompson’s killing, in New York City, U.S., August 14, 2026. Mangione admitted in court Friday to killing Brian Thompson and pleaded guilty to federal charges of stalking the executive with the intent to kill him. (David Dee Delgado/Reuters)
“Before traveling to New York,I used a 3-D printer to make a gun,” he added. “On the morning of Dec 4, 2024, I shot Mr. Thompson in Manhattan…I knew what I was doing .”
Federal prosecutors said they intended to show several pieces of evidence at trial, including security footage apparently showing Mangione arriving in New York on a bus and then following Thompson around the Hilton shortly before he was killed.
A hooded man aiming a handgun in this still image taken from surveillance video on the morning of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson’s murder in New York City on Dec. 4, 2024. The video shows the assassin approach from behind and open fire with a handgun, killing Thompson outside a Manhattan Hilton hotel. (NYPD)
Garnett scheduled Mangione’s sentencing hearing for Dec. 18.
After the hearing, NYPD Commissioner Jessica Tisch sent a sharp message to people who support Mangione.
Luigi Mangioni is escorted from an NYPD helicopter in New York City, NY, Thursday, December, 19, 2024. Mangione is the prime suspect in the murder of United Healthcare CEO, Brian Thompson. (Rashid Umar Abbasi for News Outlet)
“To those who idolize Luigi Mangione. I say this violence is not a cause. Murder is not a message. And a killer is certainly not a hero,” Tisch said. “From the moment that Mr. Thompson was assassinated on the morning of December 4th. The NYPD mobilized an enormous investigative effort. Our detectives combed through thousands of hours of surveillance video, followed up on hundreds of tips, and worked through an extraordinary volume of forensic and digital evidence.”
