Luigi Mangione charged with murder of CEO in New York shooting

The man accused of killing UnitedHealthcare’s chief executive has been charged with murder as an act of terrorism, prosecutors said on Tuesday(December 17) as they worked to bring him to a New York court from a Pennsylvania jail.

Luigi Mangione, 26, already was charged with murder in the December 4 killing of Brian Thompson, but the indictment could help move along procedural steps toward extraditing the suspect.

Mangione’s New York lawyer has not commented on the case. Mr Mangione has been indicted on one charge of first-degree murder, and two counts of second-degree murder, one of which is charged as killing as an act of 'terrorism', the New York District Attorney said.

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Mr Thompson, 50, was shot dead on a Manhattan street as he walked to a hotel where Minnesota-based UnitedHealthcare – the United States’ biggest medical insurer – was holding an investor conference.

After days of intense police searches and publicity, Mangione was arrested on December 9 after being spotted in a McDonald’s in Altoona, Pennsylvania.

New York police officials have said Mangione was carrying the gun used in Mr Thompson’s killing, a passport and various fake IDs, including the one that the suspected shooter presented to check into a New York hostel.