Federal prosecutors are seeking the death penalty against the 26-year-old man accused of killing UnitedHealthcare Chief Executive Brian Thompson outside a Manhattan hotel on Dec. 4, U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi said Tuesday.
Bondi said she ordered prosecutors to seek the execution of Luigi Mangione because, as she put it, he carried out "a premeditated, cold-blooded assassination that shocked America."
According to prosecutors, Mangione kept a diary in which he expressed hostility toward the health insurance industry and its wealthy executives. UnitedHealthcare is the largest health insurer in the US, although the company has said Mangione was never a customer.
Mangione is facing state and federal charges in connection with Thompson's murder. He has pleaded not guilty to state charges and pleaded not guilty to federal charges.
The maximum sentence for state charges is life imprisonment.
Mangione and his lawyers have said they plan to use about $775,000 raised on the GiveSendGo platform to help with his legal defense. The campaign was organized by a group called the December 4th Legal Committee.