Luigi Mangione has waived extradition and will be taken immediately to New York to begin criminal proceedings related to the Dec. 4 killing of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson.
Mangione did not speak during his court appearance Thursday morning, except to answer "yes" or "no" when prompted by his attorney, CNN reported. Mangione's attorney in Pennsylvania, Thomas Dickey, said they had conferred with his New York representation and they did no believe that waiving extradition would harm Mangione's defense.
Mangione has been in Pennsylvania since being arrested at a McDonald's in Altoona Dec. 9. Extradition to New York on murder charges related to the Thompson shooting could have taken weeks. Instead, CNN reported the Mangione will be flown from Pennsylvania to a New York area airport.
Among the charges facing Mangione is murder as an act of terrorism. The charge was applied because Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg said the killing in a midtown Manhattan"was intended to evoke terror. And we've seen that reaction," the Associated Press reported.
Since the killing there has been an outpouring of frustration directed toward the health insurance industry. There have been repeated efforts to raise money for Mangione's defense on platforms such as GoFundMe, which has continuously removed the pages. Other reactions have included wanted posters for other healthcare insurance executives in Manhattan, Fox Business reported.
