A Pennsylvania police officer who received information that Luigi Mangione had been spotted at a local McDonald's said he and his boss were so skeptical that it was with the suspected shooter that they exchanged jokes about it.
Joseph Detwiler said in a Manhattan courtroom Tuesday that the information ultimately led to Mangione's arrest for the murder of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Wilson in New York last December.
Mr. Mangione, 27, who has pleaded not guilty to state and federal murder charges, was in court for the second day of the trial to decide whether evidence from his arrest would be admissible at trial.
His defense team is asking that key evidence be excluded, arguing he was not immediately informed of his rights.
“He said, ‘If you catch the shooter in New York, I’ll buy you a sandwich at a local restaurant,’” Mr. Detwiler told the court in text messages he exchanged with his lieutenant. “I said, 'Consider it done.'
The advice Mr. Detwiler responded to was played out in court on Monday. He was called 911 by the manager of a McDonald's restaurant in Altoona, who said customers believed they had spotted the suspect.
The police camera footage and accompanying audio were also played in court during the preliminary hearing, which could last several days as lawyers are expected to call numerous witnesses.
Mr. Mangione was arrested days after he allegedly shot and killed Mr. Thompson, a father of two, as he walked to an investor conference on a busy Manhattan street on Dec. 4, 2024.
The shooting sparked an interstate manhunt for the alleged killer and sparked debate over the for-profit health insurance industry in the United States.
Mr. Detwiler, a police officer from Altoona, Pennsylvania, and his partner were sent to a fast food restaurant to verify information.
Although the officer questioned her veracity, telling prosecutors that he answered the dispatch call in a “semi-sarcastic” tone, he learned an hour later that it was legitimate.
Mr. Detwiler said he saw a man wearing a large coat, a brown hat and a medical mask sitting at a table near the bathrooms, just as the informant had said. He said he walked by, wanting to see what Mr. Mangione would do when he saw the officers in uniform, and asked for his name and identification, which turned out to be fake.
He said he then asked the man to remove his mask and almost immediately realized it was Mr Mangione.
Footage played in court showed Mr Mangione eating pancakes and a steak sandwich as Christmas music played in the background, reported CBS News, the BBC's US partner.
Mr Detweiler, who could be heard whistling to the music, told the court he was “trying to keep things calm and normal”.
The officer told Mr. Mangione that they were validating his ID when they were actually waiting for backup, making up a story that the restaurant had a loitering policy. Mr. Mangione was at that McDonald's for about 40 minutes.
Mr. Mangione's defense team hopes to convince a judge to exclude evidence including a 9mm pistol and a notebook in which prosecutors say he outlined a motive.
Mr. Mangione's legal team is also pushing to block the federal government from seeking the death penalty.
His lawyer, Karen Agnifilo, pressed Mr. Detwiler to describe how he identified Mr. Mangione.
Ms Agnifilo said the dispatch call was a “low priority” and Mr Detwiler agreed that “it didn't sound serious on the radio” and that they did not use lights and sirens as they approached the McDonald's.
