US CEO slaying suspect charged with murder as 'act of terrorism'
US authorities on Tuesday charged the man suspected of gunning down a health insurance CEO in New York earlier this month with murder, including a charge of second-degree murder "as an act of terrorism."
Luigi Mangione, 26, is accused of shooting UnitedHealthcare chief executive Brian Thompson on a Manhattan street on December 4, triggering a nationwide manhunt that ended last week when he was spotted at a Pennsylvania McDonald's.
The former data engineer remains jailed in that state as he fights efforts to extradite him to New York to face charges there over the killing, which brought into focus widespread public anger against the US healthcare system.
Mangione "is charged with one count of murder in the first degree and two counts of murder in the second degree, including one count of murder in the second degree as an act of terrorism," said Manhattan district attorney Alvin Bragg.
Bragg said the terrorism charge was included because the shooting met the prerequisites for such a determination under New York law.
"In its most basic terms, this was a killing that was intended to evoke terror and we've seen that reaction," he said. "This was not an ordinary killing."
The maximum penalty for the murder charges Mangione faces is life in prison without parole, Bragg said.
The suspect was also charged with several crimes related to his possession of a weapon, which authorities said was a 3D-printed "ghost gun."
"We allege he... took out a nine-millimeter 3D-printed ghost gun equipped with a 3D-printed suppressor and shot (Thompson) once in the back and once in the leg," said Bragg.
"These weapons are increasingly proliferating throughout New York City and the entire country. Evolving technology will only make this problem worse," he said.
"Last year, over 80 ghost guns and ghost gun parts were recovered in Manhattan alone."
'Shocking and appalling'
In the wake of Thompson's killing, many social media users have lionized Mangione, with some even calling for further killings of other CEOs.
Jessica Tisch, the New York City police commissioner, criticized members of the public who had praised the murder.
"In the nearly two weeks since Mr. Thompson's killing, we have seen a shocking and appalling celebration of cold-blooded murder," said Tisch.
Mangione is due in Pennsylvania court on Thursday for a hearing on his extradition to New York.
Police say a "life-changing, life-altering" back injury may have motivated Mangione, although they added that there was "no indication" that he was ever a client of UnitedHealthcare.
When he was arrested, Mangione had a three-page handwritten text criticizing the US health care system.
Police have said that Mangione's fingerprints matched those found near the crime scene, and that shell casings match the gun found on him when he was arrested.
Bragg said that the suspect traveled to New York on November 24 with the intention of murdering Thompson.
On December 4, he is alleged to have waited "for nearly an hour" outside the hotel where Thompson was shot early that morning.
"This was a frightening, well-planned, targeted murder that was intended to cause shock and attention and intimidation," said district attorney Bragg. (AFP)
