The suspected assassin charged with the murder of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson will be held in the same jail hellhole as controversial artist Sean “Diddy” Combs.
Luigi Mangione, who waived extradition and landed in New York City on Thursday, is currently in federal custody and will be imprisoned at the notorious Metropolitan Detention Center in Brooklyn.
The federal prison is riddled with inmate deaths and violence, vermin, raw sewage, understaffing, and decaying facilities.
“The MDC was one of the most troubled, if not the most troubled facility in the Bureau of Prisons,” said Cameron Lindsay, a former warden at the jail, to The New York Times in 2019.
In addition to Sean Combs, Mangione will be living with three cartel figures: Ismael “El Mayo” Zambada, Nestor Perez “El Nini,” and Genaro Garcia Luna.
The prison complex had hosted high-profile inmates such as R Kelly, Ghislaine Maxwell, Martin Shkreli, Fetty Wap, Joaquín “El Chapo” Guzmán, and Sam Bankman-Fried, the creator of FTX cryptocurrency exchange.
The Metropolitan Correctional Center in Lower Manhattan was temporarily closed in August 2021, leaving the MDC as the lone federal compound in New York City.
FEDERAL DETENTION
Mangione was officially taken into federal custody at 1 p.m., when he was extradited from Pennsylvania to Manhattan and given over to FBI agents by New York police officers.
Karen Agnifilo, Mangione’s attorney, did not request bail during his federal court appearance on Thursday afternoon.
Agnifilo claimed she was taken aback by the sudden wave of federal indictments against her client.
“These seem like two different cases,” the attorney, whose spouse represents Bad Boy CEO Combs in his federal sex trafficking prosecution, said of the state and federal allegations.
“The Manhattan District Attorney’s murder charge is based on terrorism and intimidation of a group of people. This is stalking a person.
“Do we have one case, two cases, or two investigations? Is there a joint investigation? Agnifilo questioned Judge Kahterarine Parker.
“Frankly, I’ve never seen anything like that and what’s happening here,” she said in response.
“This is a highly unusual situation that we find ourselves in.”
Mangione’s next court appearance is scheduled for January 18, 2025.
PERP WALK
A significant NYPD presence from various ranks, including Mayor Eric Adams, surrounded Mangione as he exited from a chopper near Wall Street.
NYPD detectives accompanied the alleged assassin from the Blair County Court House in Hollidaysburg, Pennsylvania, to Altoona Blair County Airport, where they boarded a Cessna 208 bound for New York.
“We released him to the custody of the New York City Police Department, and they will transport him back to New York City in a safe and secure manner,” Blair County District Attorney Peter Weeks told reporters following Mangione’s extradition hearing.
The plane carrying Mangione arrived at Islip’s MacArthur Airport on Long Island at 12:15 p.m.
He was greeted by scores of armed police officers, who mounted him on an NYPD chopper.
A sea of police officers led Mangione, who was cuffed at the wrists and ankles and dressed in an orange prison jumpsuit, from the Lower Manhattan heliport to an unmarked police van.
“Luigi Mangione was brought back to New York City to answer to charges in the murder of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson,” a statement from Mayor Adams reads.
“Those who bring illegal guns to our city will face justice.”
Mangione was allowed to change into street clothes for his federal court appearance, which included a white button-down shirt with a navy three-quarter zip jumper over it and khaki jeans.
After the hearing, his attorney spoke briefly with the media, saying, “We’re going to respectfully decline to make any comment at this time.”
“Mr. Mangione is grateful for everyone’s support. “Thank you very much,” Agnifilo added.
‘CHECKS EVERY BOX’
The recent federal indictment revealed additional details about Mangione’s three-page handwritten manifesto, which officials discovered in his backpack.
The letters reflected the suspect’s dissatisfaction with corporate greed and referred to insurance firms as “parasites,” according to court filings.
The University of Pennsylvania graduate had planned to assassinate Thompson as early as August 15, according to the indictment.
“The details are finally coming together,” read an entry in the notebook, according to court filings.
“I’m glad – in a way – that I’ve procrastinated,” Mangione allegedly wrote, claiming that it allowed him to learn more about the company he was targeting.
“The Notebook entry also stated that ‘the target is insurance’ because ‘it checks every box,'” according to the accusation.
Mangione reportedly stated, “This investor conference is a true windfall… and – most importantly – the message becomes self-evident.”
Timeline of Brian Thompson’s murder
BRIAN Thompson, UnitedHealthcare’s 50-year-old CEO, was shot to death in Manhattan in an execution-style killing.
Here’s all we know about Thompson’s murder thus far.
Monday, December 2: Thompson goes from Minnesota to New York City for an investor conference in Midtown Manhattan.
Thompson is assassinated by a masked shooter while walking from his hotel across the street to the New York Hilton Midtown on Wednesday, December 4, at 6:45 a.m. The execution was captured on surveillance, and the suspect was seen bicycling away into Central Park. Cops begin a citywide search for the assassin.
11:30 a.m. – Police revealed gruesome photographs of the execution, offered a reward for information, and issued an urgent plea to New Yorkers to keep a look out.
12:00 p.m. – Thompson’s estranged wife, Paulette, said that her husband was threatened before being shot.
2:45 p.m. – Cops released further frightening photographs of the guy ordering at Starbucks, which partially revealed his face. The U.S. Sun stated that the coffee shop was only two streets away from the shooting, but it is unknown when he visited.
December 5, 6 a.m. – According to reports, the assassin left behind live shots and shell casings with the phrases “deny,” “dispose,” and “defend” etched on them. These phrases are reminiscent of the book Delay, Deny, Defend, which examines the failures of the healthcare business. The author of the book made no response on the reports.
8 a.m. – Police raid a hostel on New York City’s Upper West Side, where the suspect is believed to have lodged. It is thought he wore a mask for the most of his time there.
11 a.m.: A person of interest in Thompson’s murder is pictured. He is wearing a hood in the snap, but his entire face can be seen bursting into a dazzling grin. As of now, no arrests have been made in connection with the inquiry.
Afternoon: Law enforcement confirmed that the suspect arrived in New York City on a Greyhound bus on November 24. It has also been verified that the suspect dropped a burner cell phone near the shooting scene.
December 6, 3 p.m. Police said they suspect the killer fled New York City via interstate bus. They reveal more security footage showing him taking a taxi to the George Washington Bridge Bus Station.
On December 9, Luigi Mangione, 26, was apprehended as a “strong person of interest” at a McDonald’s in Altoona, Pennsylvania. He was carrying a three-page manifesto, fraudulent identification, and a gun similar to the one used in Thompson’s murder.
