Luigi Mangione pumps fist in court as body cam allegedly reveals loaded magazine found inside wet underwear
Luigi Mangione pumped his fist in court Monday as body-camera footage allegedly showed officers finding a loaded magazine tucked inside wet underwear in the suspected assassin’s backpack.
Mangione returned to Manhattan Criminal Court on Monday morning for day 5 of hearings to determine whether some evidence will be excluded from his trial. Mangione is accused of murdering UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson in December 2024.
Body camera video aired in court showed Altoona, Pennsylvania, Police Officer Christy Wasser, searching through Mangione's backpack when he was arrested and allegedly finding a magazine with bullets wrapped in wet underwear that was inside the alleged assassin's backpack.
"There was another magazine hidden in his underwear," Wasser can be heard saying.
911 CALL FOR LUIGI MANGIONE'S ARREST IN MCDONALD'S RELEASED: 'HE LOOKS LIKE THE CEO SHOOTER'
As Wasser held up the magazine with bullets inside, someone can be heard saying, "it's f------ him."
Wasser testified she went to the McDonald's in Altoona, Pennsylvania on her own accord to assist Officer Joseph Detwiler, and subsequently began searching Mangione's backpack as he was placed under arrest.
As she was looking through the bag, a now-handcuffed Mangione invoked his right to remain silent when officers asked if there was anything inside that they should be worried about. Wasser testified that this move heightened her concern, and she began searching the bag for a bomb – despite never ordering any of the restaurant staff or patrons out of the area.
Wasser's search subsequently yielded the magazine, which prompted her to be instructed to finish the search and return to the police station, according to her testimony. However, she went on to tell the courtroom that two of her fellow officers debated if the search should continue, with two officers disagreeing on if a search warrant was needed or if probable cause existed.
Mangione was arrested at the McDonald's on Dec. 9, 2024. An employee at the fast-food restaurant reportedly recognized Mangione and told a co-worker, who then alerted the police. He faces numerous state and federal charges in relation to the alleged murder.
The suspected assassin's lawyers are asking the judge to suppress evidence that was taken from his backpack following the arrest, in addition to statements he gave to police when he was taken into custody at the McDonald's.
Mangione's lawyers argued Fourth and Fifth Amendment concerns, which protect against unreasonable searches and seizures as well as the right to due process. Prosecutors say that police acted within the law, arguing that the warrantless search of Mangione's bag after his arrest was legal, adding that the only non-Mirandized statement he gave was allegedly giving officers a fake name.
Last week, prosecutors released the 911 call which led to Mangione's arrest in Pennsylvania.
"I'm a manager at Plank Road McDonald's out here on the boulevard," a McDonald's manager told the 911 dispatcher. "And I have a customer here, that some other customers were suspicious of, that he looks like the CEO shooter from New York."
The evidence suppressing hearings will resume on Tuesday morning.
Fox News Digital's Michael Ruiz contributed to this report.