Mangione waives extradition, en route to NY

Luigi Mangione, the suspect in the killing of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson, waived extradition and is headed back to New York to face murder charges.

Mangione, 26, will leave Pennsylvania on Thursday after he agreed to be extradited during a court appearance, a spokeswoman confirmed.

He was being held in the Keystone State after his arrest in Altoona last week.

Thompson was shot and killed in Manhattan earlier this month outside the Hilton Midtown hotel before his company’s annual investor meeting. The suspect fled, and a days-long manhunt ensued.

Mangione was spotted in a McDonald’s in Altoona and has been in custody on firearm charges in Pennsylvania.

Prosecutors in New York subsequently unveiled a murder indictment, including a first-degree murder charge and two counts of second-degree murder, one of which was charged as a terrorism crime.

A Manhattan courtroom has been set aside for Mangione’s appearance later Thursday, and an overflow room has been designated for people to watch the proceeding, The Associated Press reported.

Blair County (Pa.) District Attorney Peter Weeks said Mangione will “go forth with New York to await trial or prosecution.”

“We intend to keep our case active, and we intend to essentially revisit the case when the defendant is available for prosecution in Blair County,” Weeks said of the charges Mangione faces in Pennsylvania.