Accused killer Luigi Mangione arrived back in New York and was hit with new federal murder and stalking charges Thursday in connection with the brazen public execution of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson, which could place the 26-year-old murder suspect in line for the death penalty.
Federal authorities unsealed the complaint Thursday in the high-profile case, which will proceed in parallel with the New York case in which he’s facing 11-counts at the state level – including an “exceedingly rare” first-degree murder charge.
The federal complaint will see Mangione face charges including murder through the use of a firearm, two counts of stalking and one count of possession of a firearm, court documents reveal.
Federal prosecutors pursued their own case to ensure the alleged gunman will be eligible for the death penalty, sources told The Post.
New York did away with the death penalty in 2004, but federal authorities maintain the ability to ask juries to impose capital punishment in certain murder cases.
He’s expected to appear in Manhattan federal court sometime after 2:30 Thursday afternoon.
Mangione briefly appeared for a hearing in Blair County Courthouse in Pennsylvania Thursday morning but was quickly whisked back to Manhattan after waiving extradition to face state charges for allegedly gunning down the healthcare CEO outside a Hilton hotel in Midtown on Dec. 4.
In addition to the first-degree murder charge, Mangione has been slapped with two counts of second-degree murder and numerous counts of weapon possession and second-degree forgery.
He faces 25 years to life on the second-degree murder charge.
Mangione, originally from Towson, Maryland, is an anti-capitalist Ivy Leaguer with a privileged background, hailing from a prominent family in the Old Line State.
Sources said he harbored a deep grudge against the medical community for how it treated one of his sick relatives, which authorities believe eventually boiled over and culminated in him allegedly turning a gun on the UnitedHealthcare CEO.
After a manhunt, he was captured on Dec. 9 at a McDonald’s restaurant in Altoona, Pennsylvania, following what Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg called a “well-planned targeted murder.”
Since his arrest, Mangione has garnered a cult-like following of sympathetic radicals enamored by his matinee idol appearance and marxist leanings.
Around 100 protesters lined sidewalks in front of the courthouse in Pennsylvania, and the NYPD is girding for a similar outpouring of support outside federal court in Manhattan later today.
