A Minnesota man has been charged with impersonating a federal officer in his lackluster attempt to bust Luigi Mangione out of jail.
Mark Anderson, 36, was charged on Thursday for impersonating a federal agent after he allegedly posed as an FBI agent as he walked into the Metropolitan Detention Center in Brooklyn, New York. The facility is where Mangione, 27, accused of killing UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson, is being held without bail as he awaits federal and state trials for the December 2024 killing.
Anderson, a New York City pizza worker, claimed he had paperwork “signed by a judge” ordering the release of a specific inmate. Though the criminal complaint doesn’t name the inmate, sources told ABC News that Anderson sought to free Mangione.
His ruse was exposed when Bureau of Prisons personnel asked for identification. Anderson reportedly showed them a Minnesota driver’s license and then “threw at the BOP officers numerous documents.”
Anderson claimed he had weapons in his bag. The criminal complaint against him reports that he had a barbecue fork and a pizza cutter.
Anderson is now being held in the Metropolitan Detention Center alongside Mangione and is scheduled to appear in court on Thursday.
Mangione is due to appear in court on Friday, where a judge will decide if the death penalty is a sentencing option if Mangione is convicted.
Mangione is accused of shooting Thompson, 50, in the back on a Midtown, Manhattan sidewalk. He was arrested 24 hours later in Altoona, Pennsylvania, 280 miles away from the scene. There, he had a gun in his backpack that matched the bullets used to kill Thompson.
Mangione allegedly scrawled a 262-word “manifesto” in which he raged about “parasitic” health insurance companies. In a separate document, he allegedly considered using a bomb to kill Thompson but decided against it out of fear of killing innocents.
Mangione has generated a fervent fandom since his arrest. “Free Luigi” has become a common refrain on social media, where his supporters compare him to a modern-day Robin Hood. His defense team has set up a website directing fans on how to send him gifts and fan mail. When he appeared in court in December 2025, he was greeted by numerous adoring fans.
Mangione pleaded “not guilty” to all charges related to the killing of Thompson in April 2025. His defense team is arguing that several elements of his arrest, including police searching his backpack without a warrant, violated his rights.
Judge Gregory Carro is expected to rule on whether prosecutors can use the evidence procured from Mangione’s backpack on May 18.
Mangione’s lawyers are also arguing that Attorney General Pam Bondi’s public statements on the case have jeopardized Mangione’s right to a fair trial. Bondi pushed for the death penalty in the case before Mangione was formally indicted.
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