Malcom X was assassinated on February 21, 1965, as he was about to speak at a rally at the Audubon Ballroom in Manhattan.
Two men convicted in 1966 of the murder a year earlier in New York of the activist Malcolm X, one of the greatest exponents of the fight against racism, were acquitted this Thursday, following the announcement made the previous day by the office of the Manhattan district attorney, Cyrus Vance.
Mohamed A. Aziz and Jalil Islam were acquitted half a century after the murder of Malcolm X in 1965, following an investigation started 22 months ago that has proven their innocence. Only Aziz, who was released from prison in 1985, was present in the New York court in which his exoneration has been read. Islam left prison in 1987.
“These men were not entitled to the justice they deserved,” Prosecutor Vance told The New York Times on Wednesday.
The trial for the death of the black leader in February 1965 was dotted with errors and omissions, according to an investigation carried out by the Manhattan district attorney’s office and the attorneys for both convicts, cited by the New York newspaper.
After 22 months, the investigation concluded that both the FBI (federal police) and the New York Police withheld evidence that, if made public, would probably have led to the acquittal of the two men who spent decades in jail for a crime that did not committed.
Malcom X He was assassinated on February 21, 1965, as he was about to speak at a rally at the Audubon Ballroom in Manhattan, at the height of his popularity for his fight for equality and human rights.
The review of the case came after the presentation of a documentary on the murder and a new biography of the activist that, however, does not identify the murderers or reveal if there was a possible conspiracy by the police or the government to silence him.
Malcolm X and his legacy are remembered when commemorating 50 years of his assassination
Nor does it clarify why the police and the government were unable to prevent the crime, when evidence shows that there was ample evidence that his murder was being prepared.
After years of demanding justice, the names of Aziz, 83, who was released in 1985, and Islam, who was released from prison in 1987 and died in 2009, will finally be cleared.
A third man, 80-year-old Mujahid Abdul Halim, confessed to the murder and was released in 2010. During the 1966 trial, he claimed that Aziz and Islam were innocent. (I)
Paul is a talented author and journalist with a passion for entertainment and general news. He currently works as a writer at the 247 News Agency, where he has established herself as a respected voice in the industry.
