Ex-Manhattan Prosecutor to Defend Suspect Charged in the Murder of UnitedHealthcare CEO

NEW YORK—The individual accused of murdering UnitedHealthcare’s CEO has enlisted a well-known defense attorney as Manhattan prosecutors aim to extradite him from Pennsylvania to face a murder charge.

Luigi Mangione will be represented by Karen Friedman Agnifilo, a former high-ranking deputy in the Manhattan district attorney’s office who has since transitioned to private practice.

Friedman Agnifilo’s law firm, Agnifilo Intrater LLP, confirmed in a statement late Friday that she has been retained to defend Mangione. The firm indicated that she will not provide any comments on the case at this time.

Mangione was apprehended on Monday after a customer at a McDonald’s in Altoona, Pennsylvania, recognized him while he was having breakfast and noticed his resemblance to the suspect wanted for Brian Thompson’s killing in Manhattan on December 4.

Law enforcement officials say Mangione was discovered in possession of a firearm, a mask, and writings that connected him to the ambush outside the New York Hilton Midtown, where Thompson was arriving for an annual investor conference for his company.

Mangione, 26, is being held without bail in Pennsylvania, where he initially faced charges related to firearms and forgery. Altoona is located approximately 230 miles (around 370 kilometers) west of New York City.

Mangione’s attorney in Pennsylvania, Thomas Dickey, has advised against forming premature judgments about the case and stated that his client plans to challenge the extradition to New York.

However, Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg indicated on Friday that it appears Mangione may soon decide to abandon that battle.

“We will continue to proceed on two fronts, and we will be prepared whether he chooses to waive extradition or contest it,” Bragg mentioned at an unrelated press conference in Times Square.

Shortly after Mangione’s arrest on Monday, Bragg’s office filed charges against him that included five counts, such as intentional murder, criminal possession of a weapon, and criminal possession of a forged instrument.

New York Governor Kathy Hochul has stated that she is ready to ask her Pennsylvania counterpart, Governor Josh Shapiro, to intervene and issue a governor’s warrant to ensure Mangione’s extradition if he does not consent to be moved voluntarily.

Mangione’s new attorney, Friedman Agnifilo, previously served as the Chief Assistant District Attorney from 2014 to 2021 and was once the head of the office’s trial division. She has made numerous television appearances, serves as a legal analyst for CNN, co-hosts a weekly podcast, and acts as a legal consultant for “Law & Order.”

Additionally, her husband and law partner Mark Agnifilo is currently representing Sean “Diddy” Combs in a federal sex trafficking case in Manhattan.

By Michael R. Sisak