CNN’s Kaitlan Collins shared, then deleted, an X post containing a link to a website set up by Luigi Mangione’s defense team, including how to donate to the accused killer of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson.
Collins wrote on X on Friday, “Luigi Mangione’s legal defense team has launched a new website today” and included the link without any further context. She deleted the post, but conservatives have since accused Collins of supporting the fundraising site.
Stephen L. Miller, a reporter for the British publication The Spectator, shared Collins’ deleted messages as well as a screenshot of the website on X.
Collins rejected claims that she was supporting Mangione’s efforts to raise money. “This is not true. I posted that his attorneys created a website, which is newsworthy and other outlets have also reported on. In no way did I share a fundraising link for him,” she wrote in response to a tweet by the New York Post.
Mangione’s legal team launched the website Friday. To date, supporters have raised over $400,000 for his legal defense. Mangione is accused of fatally shooting Thompson on Dec. 4, 2024, and is currently imprisoned in Metropolitan Detention Center in Manhattan.
Mangione was charged with murder as an act of terrorism in December. He was also charged with forgery and three counts of illegal weapons possession.
