Luigi Mangione ditched his orange jumpsuit for a more fashionable ensemble as he appeared in federal court in Manhattan on Thursday.
The 26-year-old was spotted in his prison garb as he left a Pennsylvania court earlier today, looking clean-shaven with a fresh haircut and a visible eyebrow trim.
But when he appeared in a New York City courtroom to be charged with murder in the Dec. 4 shooting death of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson, Mangione was seen wearing “a white button-down shirt, a navy blue three-quarter-zip sweater and khaki pants’. TMZ reports.
He was not handcuffed during the hearing, but when the hearing ended, he was led out of the courtroom with his ankles cuffed by two U.S. Marshals. according to CNN.
The accused killer was charged earlier this week with murder and an act of terrorism, under a New York state law that allows harsher penalties when a killing is aimed at frightening citizens or influencing government.
Still, many across the country have expressed support for Mangione, who has received 54 emails, 87 pieces of mail and 163 deposits into his commissary account — which allows inmates to buy items behind bars — since his arrest last week. the independent reports.
His attorney representing him on gun charges in Pennsylvania has also claimed that he has rejected offers from strangers to pay Mangione’s legal bills as his supporters have raised more than $100,000 for his defense fund.
Any further fan mail will now be forwarded to the Metropolitan Detention Center in Brooklyn, where Mangione is being held in custody.
Luigi Mangione, 26, was seen in his orange prison garb as he was extradited from Pennsylvania to New York City on Thursday
When he appeared in Manhattan federal court, Mangione wore “a white button-up shirt, a navy blue three-quarter-zip sweater, and khaki pants.”
Prosecutors have argued in a recently unsealed federal indictment that police found notes that Mangione wrote expressing his desire to “move” the CEO of an insurance company.
He allegedly wrote about his disdain for the health insurance industry and its executives in a notebook that police recovered when he was arrested on December 9 in Altoona, Pennsylvania.
In an August 15 post, Mangione reportedly wrote how “the details are finally coming together” and that “the goal is insurance” because “it checks every box.”
On October 22, Mangione allegedly wrote: ‘1.5 months. This investor conference is a real windfall… and – most importantly – the message becomes self-evident.”
Thompson, CEO of UnitedHealthcare, was then shot in the street in the early morning hours of December 4 as he walked to a downtown Manhattan hotel where his Minnesota-based company was holding an investor conference.
The shooting was captured on security video, but the suspect evaded police for days before Mangione was captured about 447 miles west of New York City.
There, police said they retrieved a manifesto outlining his grievances against UnitedHealthcare.
‘To spare you a lengthy investigation, I clearly state that I have not collaborated with anyone. This was fairly trivial: some basic social engineering, basic CAD, (and) a lot of patience,” he reportedly wrote in the manifesto, according to the Daily Beast.
Mangione is charged with murder for the Dec. 4 shooting of 50-year-old UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson
Thompson was shot at close range as he walked outside a hotel in downtown Manhattan
He went on to say he had “respect” for federal investigators and apologized for causing any “trauma” but appeared to defend his alleged actions.
“To be honest, these parasites already expected it,” the manifesto wrote.
It claimed that the United States had the “world’s most expensive health care system” but criticized the system for only ranking America 42nd in life expectancy.
Officers also said they matched a gun found on Mangione to shell casings found at the scene and his fingerprints to a water bottle and energy bar wrapper found nearby.
Mangione was also said to be carrying a passport, a fake ID and approximately $10,000 in U.S. and foreign currency.
He now faces forgery, weapons possession and tampering with documents or identification charges – which his attorney Tom Dickey has questioned.
The accused killer was charged earlier this week with murder and an act of terrorism
He appeared in court Thursday, when he waived a preliminary hearing on the forgery and weapons charges in Pennsylvania in exchange for the prosecutor giving him a 20-page investigative report from the Altoona Police Department.
He then agreed to be extradited to New York while officers waited to bring the murder suspect back to the Big Apple.
Meanwhile, dozens of protesters showed up outside the Pennsylvania courthouse in support of Mangione, holding signs reading “Health Insurance Practices Are Terrorizing People!” and ‘Death by denial is murder!’
Some reportedly flew from as far as California to support the alleged killer, and at least two protesters were dressed as Luigi from the Super Mario Bros video game.
When Mangione arrived in New York, social media users noticed that he kept pressing his tongue against his cheek.
Although likely a nervous tic, the gesture led to claims online that he was trying to send a message to his supporters.
When Mangione arrived in New York on Thursday, social media users noticed he kept pressing his tongue against his cheek
Protesters showed up outside a courthouse in Pennsylvania on Thursday to support Mangione
One X user wrote: ‘Luigi, pressing his tongue to his cheek means ‘contempt’! That means disrespectful! He sent a signal to ALL!’
Another person on the discussion website called Datalounge agreed, claiming that Mangione “stuck his tongue into his upper cheek.” Wisdom toothache or secret terrorist signal?’
According to Vocabulary.com, the phrase “tongue-in-cheek” describes an “exaggerated facial feature intended to convey contempt or irony.”
In addition to the state charges in New York and Pennsylvania, Mangione now faces federal charges of murder by use of a firearm, stalking and a firearms offense.
Murder by means of a firearm can lead to the death penalty.