NEW YORK (AP) 鈥� is expected to plead guilty as early as Friday in the federal case accusing him of stalking and killing , according to a person familiar with the matter.
The person, who was not authorized to talk publicly about the case and spoke to The Associated Press on the condition of anonymity, cautioned that Mangione could change his mind. If he follows through, it would be a stunning development in a case that rattled business leaders while galvanizing their critics.
Mangione鈥檚 lawyers, and spokespeople for the Justice Department and Manhattan federal prosecutors, declined to comment.
Mangione is accused of traveling to New York City to ambush Thompson, 50, outside a Manhattan hotel on Dec. 4, 2024, as the executive walked to UnitedHealth Group鈥檚 annual investor conference.
Mangione is due in court on Friday for a hastily scheduled hearing in the federal case, which involves two counts of stalking. It wasn鈥檛 clear what charge or charges Mangione is expected to plead guilty to. The hearing, in Manhattan federal court, comes as his lawyers have been talking with federal prosecutors about a possible resolution to one of two criminal cases against Mangione in Thompson鈥檚 death. Previous talks in June broke down.
Mangione, 28, has been charged in both federal and state court in New York and still faces the possibility of a trial in his unresolved state case. Mangione鈥檚 state murder trial is set to begin Sept. 8. Both sets of charges carried the possibility of a life sentence.
Mangione has pleaded not guilty and has spoken out publicly against the prospect of two trials, telling a judge in February: 鈥淚t鈥檚 the same trial twice. One plus one is two. Double jeopardy by any commonsense definition.鈥�
Under New York law, a state prosecution could be barred if the federal case is resolved first, but it isn鈥檛 automatic.
The state鈥檚 double jeopardy protections kick in if a jury has been sworn in a prior prosecution, such as a federal case, or if that prosecution ends in a guilty plea. Mangione鈥檚 cases involve different charges arising from the same course of conduct.
Once Mangione pleads guilty, his lawyers could then ask the judge in the state case to throw out those charges on double jeopardy grounds. State prosecutors argue their case is distinct and double jeopardy shouldn’t apply.
Mangione鈥檚 federal charges allege that he traveled across state lines by bus to stalk and kill Thompson and that he used means such as a cellphone, the internet, interstate highways and staying at a hostel that serves out-of-state customers while planning and carrying out the attack. The state charges pertain to the killing itself, as well as firearms offenses.
In a letter last month, state prosecutors objected to the possibility of a guilty plea in the federal case wiping out the state case.
鈥淥bviously, any guilty pleas in these matters must account for the seriousness of defendant鈥檚 offenses, the loss of an innocent life, the impact of those crimes on the victim鈥檚 family, and the other state interests that are implicated, including the sanctity of life principle that underpins the state homicide charges,鈥� Seidemann wrote.
Mangione鈥檚 decision to plead guilty comes after a series of setbacks for his defense.
In January, U.S. District Judge Margaret Garnett took the death penalty but ruled that prosecutors could use items collected from Mangione鈥檚 backpack during his arrest as evidence against him.
They included a 3D-printed pistol that investigators said matched the one used to kill Thompson and in which authorities say Mangione described his intent to kill an insurance executive.
In June, Mangione鈥檚 lawyers said they would pursue a psychiatric defense in the state case but a day later. The defense, involving claims that he was suffering from extreme emotional disturbance at the time of the killing, isn鈥檛 allowed in federal court.
Surveillance video of the killing showed a masked gunman shooting Thompson from behind. Police say 鈥渄elay,鈥� 鈥渄eny鈥� and 鈥渄epose鈥� were written on the ammunition, mimicking a phrase used to describe how insurers avoid paying claims.
Mangione, an Ivy League graduate from a wealthy Maryland family, at a McDonald鈥檚 in Altoona, Pennsylvania, about 230 miles (about 370 kilometers) west of Manhattan.
He has become a for people upset with the health insurance industry.
An online fundraiser for his legal defense fund raised more than $1.5 million, and several dozen supporters have shown up to his court appearances, some wearing green clothing 鈥� the color worn by the Mario Bros. video game character Luigi 鈥� and 鈥淔REE LUIGI鈥� T-shirts.
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Durkin Richer reported from Washington.
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