LUIGI Mangione has accused cops of tricking him to get his DNA by offering him a snack following his arrest.
The suspected killer, 26 years old, has stated that police provided him with food and beverages at a McDonald’s in Altoona, Pennsylvania, following his arrest in December. It is alleged that the authorities then used the items for DNA testing.
Currently, Mangione is seeking to have the DNA test results excluded from his trial for the murder case, where he stands accused of fatally shooting Brian Thompson, the CEO of UnitedHealthcare, on December 4, 2024.
His attorney, Thomas Dickey, said cops gave him food only so they could get his DNA.
Photographs show the suspect enjoying a McDonald’s hashbrown on the morning of his arrest before being taken into custody and later transferred to New York City.
Dickey added the DNA samples were “poisonous fruits” because they were obtained from an illegal search, according to TMZ.
His legal team said the cops who approached Mangione on the morning of December 9 didn’t even have a proper legal reason to do so.
Mangione’s attorneys also claimed the cops illegally took his bag and the notebook containing his alleged manifesto.
The legal team is asking the court to get rid of the DNA sample in court documents filed in Pennsylvania.
In Pennsylvania, Mangione faces charges of forgery, giving a fake ID to police, and possession of an unlicensed firearm.
Even if the DNA evidence was thrown out in the Pennsylvania case, he would still face the federal and New York state charges against him.
Mangione has pleaded not guilty to 11 state charges including first-degree murder, second-degree murder as a crim of terrorism, and multiple weapons charges.
He hasn’t entered a plea yet for his federal charges of murder through use of a firearm, two stalking charges, and a firearms offense.
The alleged assassin is now awaiting trial behind bars in New York City in connection to Thompson’s murder.
