Takeaways from Luigi Mangione’s evidence hearing

Luigi Mangione, the man accused of fatally shooting UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson in a case that has drawn national attention, has seen new testimony and never-before-seen footage from the day of his arrest at a McDonald’s restaurant revealed during a hearing this week.

Mr. Mangione has pleaded not guilty to state charges related to the 2024 killing of Mr. Thompson, a father of two, as well as federal charges that carry the possibility of the death penalty.

The pretrial hearing is focused on the defense’s attempts to keep some evidence out of the trial, which has not yet been scheduled, including items found in his backpack during his arrest and statements he made to officers.

During the first two weeks of the hearing, supporters of Mangione — the scion of a prominent Maryland family and an Ivy League graduate — filled the back rows of the Manhattan criminal courtroom, some wearing a pin depicting him as a saint-like figure.

Prosecutors and Mr. Mangione’s legal team are expected to question more than a dozen witnesses since the day of his arrest, including the employees who spotted him and the police who arrested him.

Here’s a look at some of the key evidence discussed that provides a window into Mr. Mangione’s trial.

The pretrial hearing centered on McDonald’s, a small town in Altoona, Pennsylvania, where officers were shocked when they found the top suspect days after Thompson was shot to death — and hours away from the crowded crime scene in midtown Manhattan.

Witnesses indicated that the arrest might not have occurred there if not for one of Mr. Mangione’s main features: his eyebrows.

During the first day of the hearing, prosecutors played a call to police from a McDonald’s employee regarding information from a customer at the restaurant.

The employee said the customer believed one of the patrons resembled the suspect in the shooting of the United Healthcare CEO. The patron was well covered and wearing a black jacket, a medical mask, and a tan beanie. But there is one key detail that stuck.

“The only thing you can see are his eyebrows,” the employee told police.

This wasn’t the only time Mr. Mangione showed off his signature eyebrows.

Prosecutors also entered evidence cards they say Mr. Mangione had in his possession, which appeared to be to-do lists for the days after the high-profile shooting.

One card says: “Keep the momentum, FBI slowed down overnight,” while another says: “Change hat, shoes and pluck eyebrows.”

Dozens of videos released by prosecutors show Mr. Mangione’s encounter with police and eventual arrest at a McDonald’s restaurant as other customers watched.

Responding officers recounted the footage this week, telling the court what was going through their minds when they realized the 27-year-old appeared similar to the suspect in the images.

On Thursday, Altoona Lt. William Hannelly said one of his fellow officers sarcastically responded that he would “get it right away” when he heard a report of the suspect.

Hannelly told the court he understood the irony, because it seemed “unbelievable” that the shooter from “New York City found his way to a McDonald’s restaurant in Altoona, Pennsylvania.”

But at the scene, officers said they quickly saw the resemblance to New York Police Department photos that were distributed to the public days later without any evidence.

“It’s him. I’m not kidding. He’s very nervous. It’s him,” one officer can be heard telling Mr Hannelly in a phone call to the court.

In one video, Mr. Mangione eats a McDonald’s meal while officers stand guard around the restaurant waiting for more officers to arrive.

At the hearing, Mangione calmly watched the videos from the defense table, sitting next to his attorneys — his wife and husband, Karen Friedman Agnifilo and Mark Agnifilo. The latter defended Sean “Diddy” Combs, who was acquitted of sex trafficking and racketeering charges a few months ago.

Mangione, who wore a gray suit and button-up shirt most days, scribbled his notes on a legal pad, occasionally smiling and laughing with his attorney.

In a series of police camera videos played to the court, Mr. Mangione’s interactions with officers eventually led to his arrest on December 9, while Christmas music played loudly in the background of a McDonald’s restaurant.

When officers first spoke to Mr. Mangione, they asked him to pull down his mask. He listens and is heard telling officers his name is “Mark Rosario” and handing them a New Jersey ID that police later said was fake.

This identification gave officers enough reason to arrest Mr Mangione, Hannelly told the court, and in the video Mangione tells officers his real name is Luigi.

In another body camera video, an officer told the 27-year-old he was under police investigation for providing a false ID and Mr. Mangione was seen putting his hands on a wall as officers arrested him.

They then took a photo of Mr. Mangione with his hands behind his back, a photo that was widely circulated on social media after his arrest.

The pre-trial hearing also highlighted the items Mr. Mangione was carrying when he was arrested.

Mangione’s attorneys argued that the 9 mm handgun as well as a notebook should be excluded from the trial because the officers did not have a search warrant to search his backpack. Prosecutors allege that Mr. Mangione wrote in his notebook about a “deadly greed-fueled health insurance cartel.”

During Thursday’s hearing, Mr Hannelly said there were exceptions to arrest warrants.

Earlier in the week, Ms. Friedman-Agnifilo questioned the officer who searched Mr. Mangione’s bag, arguing that they were searching the bag “because you thought he was the shooter in New York City.”

“No, we search everyone,” Officer Christy Wasser said.

The video played in court shows a police officer pulling a series of items from the backpack, including a handgun magazine that Hannelly said contained 9mm bullets — all while Holly Jolly Christmas played over the loudspeaker.

A law enforcement official found a magazine in the backpack and can be heard saying it looked like a “manifesto.”

Ms Agnifilo objected after the “statement” portion of the video was played repeatedly in court, arguing that the prosecutor wanted to emphasize that line.

Ultimately, Mr. Hannelly testified, the officers decided to stop searching the backpack and take it to the police station because “it would be a mess.”

Prosecutors this week entered into evidence photos of other items Mangione had with him, including a gun, a silencer, dozens of $100 bills, face masks, hair trimmers and a passport.

The session is expected to continue until next week.