Two convicted of the murder of American activist Malcolm X will be acquitted of the crime, which occurred in 1965. The information was released this Wednesday (17) by The New York Times.
According to the report, an investigation carried out by prosecutor Cyrus Vance found that evidence of the innocence of Muhammad Aziz and Khalil Islam, including FBI documents, was not made available to the prosecution and defense at the time of the trial.
“This points to the truth that law enforcement throughout history has often failed to live up to its responsibilities,” said Vance, who will file a motion to overturn the convictions.
Aziz and Islam, who were sentenced to life in prison the year after the crime, have always pleaded not guilty – both were granted parole in the 1980s. Islam died in 2009.
Malcolm X was shot to death while speaking at a theater in New York. Over the decades, independent investigators have challenged the convictions. Vance opened the investigation after the release of a Netflix documentary series on the matter last year.
The series raises hypotheses about the participation in the crime of the Muslim group Nation of Islam, of which Malcolm X was a member, but with which he broke and whose leader, Elijah Muhammad, became the target of criticism by the activist. The group has always denied participation in the murder.
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