Supporters of accused killer Luigi Mangione packed a New York courthouse Friday desperate for a glimpse of the man who is charged with gunning down healthcare CEO Brian Thompson.
The backing was immense as fans waited in the corridors of the state court in Manhattan and a truck circled the building with a large picture of the alleged killer dressed as a saint, complete with halo.
Court officials estimated the crowd at between 250 and 300 people.
At one point a group of supporters standing in line appeared to make the word ‘Luigi’ with their arms and posed for a photo – even former US Army soldier and whistleblower Chelsea Manning was spotted in the crowd of people.
‘I’m a member of the public exercising my Sixth Amendment right to view the proceedings,’ Manning, who spent seven years in prison espionage charges, told DailyMail.com.
And when Mangione entered the corridor from a side door, the crowd erupted in delighted screams as he was escorted to the courtroom.
The Ivy League graduate wore a police vest over a green sweater, light khaki pants and brown loafers as he made his way through the roaring crowd. His hands and feet were shackled.
Defense attorney Karen Friedman Agnifilo asked that Mangione be unshackled but judge Gregory Carro said that ‘for security reasons’ the court security staff wanted to ‘keep him cuffed’.
An image depicting Mangione in a saint’s garb with a halo around his head was featured on a vehicle driving by the Manhattan Supreme Court before his hearing
Hundreds of fans mostly young female supporters stood outside the courtroom on the 15th floor where Mangione is set to appear. One supporter told DailyMail.com that she was there to ‘support the message Luigi is spreading’
Mangione’s supporters roared with delight when he was brought into the corridor from a side door to enter the courtroom wearing a vest that said police on the top
The show of support came as Mangione, 26, appeared for a routine hearing on discovery in connection with the case against him.
He is charged with the December 4 killing of United HealthCare CEO Thompson outside a Manhattan Hilton hotel where he was due to attend an investors meeting.
Prosecutor Jacob Kaplan told the court that his team is in the process of handing over 800gb of material to the defense including all surveillance obtained by the New York Police Department and from the medical examiner which carried out DNA testing.
There will also be cellphone data from the phone Mangione allegedly threw away while ‘fleeing the scene of the crime’, Kaplan said.
Agnifilo protested that in a separate federal case prosecutors were still deciding whether to seek the death penalty which she called an ‘extremely serious matter’.
She said it was ‘critical’ that they were given all of the evidence as soon as possible because there was a danger they could hamstring themselves.
Angnifilo said: ‘By defending ourselves in state court we’re potentially providing fodder for the federal case and vice versa’.
She claimed that evidence could have been buried over the arrest in Altoona, Pennsylvania because only one body camera film was available despite 12 cops apprehending Mangione.
Supporters of accused killer Luigi Mangione, 26, packed a New York courthouse Friday desperate for a glimpse of the man who is charged with gunning down healthcare CEO Brian Thompson
Many protestors wore the Super Mario Brother’s video game character Luigi merchandise in support of the alleged killer
Legions of fans, mostly women, lined up outside the Manhattan Criminal Court in frigid temperature to catch a glimpse of Luigi Mangione before he appeared in court on Friday
A disturbing wanted sign for ‘denying medical care for corporate profit’ with CEO Thompson’s name crossed out was posted near the courthouse
One person made Luigi Mangione fan club bracelets outside the courthouse in a show of support
Another protestor wrote ‘Free Luigi’ in sharpie on the back of their head
Mangione has pled not guilty to multiple counts of murder and terrorism for the December 4 slaying of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson outside a midtown Manhattan hotel
Angifilio said it was a ‘very very serious search issue’ and there ‘might be evidence that was suppressed’.
Mangione’s rights were being breached and his ‘right to have a fair trial is being impacted’, Agnifilo claimed.
She also took aim at New York Mayor Eric Adams and top NYPD officers for appearing on an HBO documentary about her client.
She talked of her ‘shock that the chief of detectives of the NYPD along the New York City mayor had time to sit down with HBO and put hair and makeup on and give their theory about the case and evidence about Mr Mangione we haven’t received’.
That included a journal police claimed was Mangione’s manifesto which the defense had not seen.
Agnifilo said: ‘They have actors playing him on television.. It didn’t sound anything like him frankly’.
The judge expressed frustration that Mangione wasn’t being held in state custody given that federal prosecutors agreed the state case could go first.
‘They’re holding him on a complaint’, Judge Carro said.
Agnifilo said that they agreed for Mangione to remain in federal custody because ‘when they’re hanging the death penalty over your head, you have no choice but to consent’
After a brief conversation with his lawyers, Mangione walked out of court
As Mangione left, one young female supporter smiled broadly.
Video shows how the killer ambushed Thompson, 50, shooting him from behind. The killer then fled the scene on an e-bike which he rode to Central Park before making his getaway.
Investigators say Thompson was specifically targeted.
Since his arrest, details had leaked from prison of Mangione’s reaction to his growing fan base, and the accused killer addressed it last week.
Lawyer Karen Friedman Agnifilo on Mangione’s team walking into the courthouse on Friday. She along with other lawyers also made a statement on the website they set up to document the case
Mangione is accused of killing UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson at point-blank range on December 4
Despite the gruesome allegations, legions of fans have flocked to Mangione’s defense expressing support for the apparently political motivations for the killing
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BREAKING NEWS
'Killer' Luigi Mangione breaks his silence from prison as he sets up sick website
His lawyers set up a website documenting his case, including a message from the alleged killer thanking his fans.
‘I am overwhelmed by – and grateful for – everyone who has written me to share their stories and express their support,’ Mangione, the son of a wealthy Maryland nursing home mogul, said.
‘Powerfully, this support has transcended political, racial, and even class divisions, as mail has flooded MDC from across the country, and around the globe.
‘While it is impossible for me to reply to most letters, please know that I read every one that I receive.
‘Thank you again to everyone who took the time to write. I look forward to hearing more in the future.’
His lawyers, Karen Friedman Agnifilo, Marc Agnifilo, and Jacob Kaplan, also made a statement on the website.
‘Due to the extraordinary volume of inquiries and outpouring of support, this site was created and is maintained by Luigi Mangione’s New York legal defense team to provide answers to frequently asked questions, accurate information about his cases, and dispel misinformation,’ it read.
‘The intent is to share factual information regarding the unprecedented, multiple prosecutions against him.’
Mangione has been in custody at the Metropolitan Detention Center in Brooklyn after his arrested on December 9 at a McDonald’s in Altoona, Pennsylvania, after a five-day manhunt.
Mangione, who attended the $40,000-a-year Gilman School in Baltimore before studying computer science and engineering at the University of Pennsylvania, has divided public opinion since his identity and the chilling details of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson’s murder were revealed after his arrest on December 9.
He allegedly used a ‘ghost gun’ and wrote ‘Deny’, ‘Depose’, and ‘Delay’ on three bullets left at the murder scene in what has been interpreted as a sign of anger at the healthcare system which reportedly sprang from his long term back problems.
Mangione faces 11 charges, including murder as an act of terrorism, and has plead not guilty.
However, many have called him a hero for targeting the head of the country’s biggest health insurer, and the American health system in general.
He has been fiercely backed by a slew of fans who have praised him for fighting back against the private healthcare sector and have also raised money for his legal defense fund.
The December 4 Legal Committee, a ‘volunteer-run fund’ dedicated solely to raising money for Mangione, have accepted donations on GiveSendGo, and have done so since December 9.
More than $465,000 has been raised for his legal battle on the fundraising site.
‘The American private health insurance industry has ruined countless lives by denying people access to basic care and burying families in medical debt,’ the December 4 Legal Committee backing the fundraiser said.
‘It’s no surprise that Luigi’s alleged actions are understood and supported by tens of millions of hard-working Americans.’
And Luigi wrote the 262-page document attacking the US healthcare industry, which was found on him when he was arrested.
Mangione allegedly said that companies like UnitedHealthcare, the biggest private health company in the US, had ‘gotten too powerful, and they continue to abuse our country for immense profit’.
An internal New York Police Department report obtained by the New York Times said that Mangione ‘appeared to view the targeted killing of (UnitedHealthcare’s) highest-ranking representative as a symbolic takedown and a direct challenge to its alleged corruption and ‘power games’.
Other extremists may view Mangione ‘as a martyr and an example to follow’, the report stated.
His support is also helped by his good looks, and many of his fans want him released from jail and the charges dropped.
Instead, he faces execution if he is convicted in a federal case that has also been brought against him.