Prominent lawyer Karen Friedman Agnifilo was hired by Luigi Mangioner to defend him against New York accusations related to the death of Brian Thompson, the CEO of UnitedHealthcare.
Friedman Agnifilo will represent him, the business Agnifilo Intrater LLC said, although they would not elaborate.
According to a statement from the firm, “She will not be making any statements at this time,”
For seven years, Friedman Agnifilo served as Cyrus Vance Jr.’s chief assistant district attorney at the Manhattan District Attorney’s Office. She was also the head of the office’s trial division for four years.
When Mangione, 26, was apprehended in Altoona, Pennsylvania, on Monday after being discovered sitting at a McDonald’s restaurant and carrying a backpack that investigators claimed contained evidence connecting him to Thompson’s shooting, the days-long manhunt for the gunman came to an end.
In New York, Mangione, who hails from a well-known Baltimore family, was accused of one murder, three charges of unlawful weapon possession, and one count of possessing a counterfeit document.
Along with three misdemeanor accusations of tampering with records or identification, possessing instruments of crime, and giving false identification to law enforcement, he was also charged with two felonies in Pennsylvania: forgery and carrying a handgun without a license.
Mangione is battling extradition to New York and is still detained in his own cell at the Huntingdon State Correctional Institution. According to a Pennsylvania Department of Corrections representative, he now eats in his cell, does not have access to a television, and does not socialize with other prisoners.
Online fundraisers in support of Mangione emerged after the arrest. At least three fundraisers have now been taken off from GoFundMe. In addition to stating that its Terms of Service forbid fundraising for the legal defense of violent crimes, GoFundMe stated it was returning donations made to the campaigns.
A fundraising for Mangione’s legal defense has not been taken down by GiveSendGo, another crowdsourcing website. The group claimed to be “not here to celebrate violence, but we do believe in the constitutional right of fair legal representation.” As of Saturday morning, the fundraising had received over $94,000. The target of the fundraising is $200,000.
It’s unclear if any of the contributions will go toward covering Mangione’s legal bills. On Saturday, his family could not be reached for comment.
Mangione would enter a not guilty plea to the accusations in both states, according to Pennsylvania lawyer Thomas Dickey, who stated that he had not seen any evidence connecting his client to the murder.
On Saturday, Dickey and Friedman Agnifilo were not immediately available for comment.
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