New York

Advertisment

Luigi Mangione, the suspect in the murder of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson, on Monday (Dec 23) pleaded not guilty to state murder and terror charges. Mangione, 26, was shackled and seated in a court in Manhattan when he leaned over to a microphone to enter his plea.

Last week, the Manhattan district attorney charged him with multiple counts of murder, including murder as an act of terrorism. Mangione's initial appearance in New York's state's trial court was preempted by federal prosecutors bringing their charges over Thompson's murder.

Advertisment

No family in court, but dozens of women wait to support Mangione

American media reported on Tuesday that while Mangione did not have family in the Manhattan court on Monday, about two dozen women attended the arraignment in the public section of the gallery, many of them voicing support for the 26-year-old man.

Speaking to ABC News, a woman said that she came to court as she believed that Mangione was bringing attention to the need for universal healthcare in the United States (US). 

Advertisment

Also read | UnitedHealthcare CEO murder suspect Luigi Mangione pleads 'not guilty' to murder, terrorism charges

The woman, who chose to remain anonymous, said that she did not trust the media's coverage of the case and wanted to see the proceedings with her own eyes to draw any conclusion. 

Last year, Mangione underwent spinal surgery for chronic back pain and became a proponent of the medical procedure that changed his life for the better.

On Reddit, he repeatedly posted about his recovery and offered words of encouragement for people with similar conditions.

Also read | Luigi Mangione: A murder suspect 'too hot to be guilty' for Gen Z

However, missing from these posts were his explicit concerns about corporate greed in the country's health insurance industry which only appeared in a note that Mangione wrote. This note was found after he was detained in Thompson's murder.

An interesting point to note is that Mangione was never insured by UnitedHealthcare.

A 26-year-old woman, who also wished to remain unidentified, told ABC News that she related to Mangione after she fell off her parent's healthcare plan and couldn't afford COBRA coverage.

A growing frustration with American health insurance firms

Brian Thompson's murder has brought back to spotlight the growing frustration of Americans about the country's health insurance industry. 

Also watch | Who is Luigi Mangione- the man suspected of killing UnitedHealthcare CEO?

ABC News reported that there has been an outpour of support for Mangione and hostility towards the healthcare industry since Thompson's murder, with police personnel warning about the increased risk to healthcare executives.

(With inputs from agencies)