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Hoover Hid That Some Witnesses In Malcolm X Assassination Trial Were FBI Informants
A Manhattan judge exonerated two men convicted of killing the revolutionary leader after decades of doubt about who was responsible for his 1965 death.Michael R. Sisak and Jennifer Peltz 11/18/2021 03:35pm EST | Updated an hour ago
NEW YORK (AP) — More than half a century after the assassination of Malcolm X, two of his convicted killers were exonerated Thursday after decades of doubt about who was responsible for the civil rights icon’s death.
Manhattan judge Ellen Biben dismissed the convictions of Muhammad Aziz and the late Khalil Islam, after prosecutors and the men’s lawyers said a renewed investigation found new evidence that the men were not involved with the killing and determined that authorities withheld some of what they knew.
“The event that has brought us to court today should never have occurred,” Aziz, 83, told the court.
He and Islam, who maintained their innocence from the start in the 1965 killing at Harlem’s Audubon Ballroom, were paroled in the 1980s. Islam died in 2009.
Malcolm X gained national prominence as the voice of the Nation of Islam, exhorting Black people to claim their civil rights “by any means necessary.” His autobiography, written with Alex Haley, remains a classic work of modern American literature.
Near the end of Malcolm X’s life, he split with the Black Muslim organization and, after a trip to Mecca, started speaking about the potential for racial unity. It earned him the ire of some in the Nation of Islam, who saw him as a traitor.
He was shot to death while beginning a speech on Feb. 21, 1965. He was 39.
Aziz and Islam, then known as Norman 3X Butler and Thomas 15X Johnson, and a third man were convicted of murder in March 1966. They were sentenced to life in prison.
The third man, Mujahid Abdul Halim — also known as Talmadge Hayer and Thomas Hagan — admitted to shooting Malcolm X but said neither Aziz nor Islam was involved. The two offered alibis, and no physical evidence linked them to the crime.
Halim was paroled in 2010. Through a relative, he declined to comment Thursday. He identified some other men as accomplices, but no one else has ever been held accountable for the crime.
The recent investigation found information in FBI files about witnesses who couldn’t identify Islam and implicated other suspects, Manhattan District Attorney Cyrus Vance Jr. told the court. The files showed that the late FBI Director J. Edgar Hoover ordered agents to tell witnesses not to reveal that they were informants when talking with police and prosecutors, Vance said.
Files from a recent investigation showed that the late FBI Director J. Edgar Hoover ordered agents to tell witnesses not to reveal that they were informants when talking with police and prosecutors about the assassination of Malcolm X, Manhattan District Attorney Cyrus Vance Jr. said on Thursday, Nov. 18, 2021.
“I apologize for what were serious, unacceptable violations of law and the public trust,” he said. “There is one ultimate conclusion: Mr. Aziz and Mr. Islam were wrongfully convicted of this crime.”
Innocence Project co-founder Barry Scheck, one of the lawyers for Aziz and for Islam’s family, said the review also found the FBI and police hid evidence from prosecutors, as what he called part of a plot to disrupt the Black civil rights movement.
The FBI and New York Police Department had evidence of Aziz’s and Islam’s innocence within hours but ignored and suppressed it, said another of their attorneys, Deborah Francois, who works with civil rights attorney David Shanies.
Biben said the case “cries out for fundamental justice.”
The NYPD and the FBI said Wednesday that they had cooperated fully with the re-investigation. They declined to comment further.
NYPD Chief of Patrol Juanita Holmes said Thursday she felt for Malcolm X’s family and for Aziz and Islam “if we are responsible for withholding information.”
“I hope that we never revisit a scenario like this again,” she added.
Attorneys, scholars and others have long raised questions about the convictions, and alternate theories and accusations have swirled around the case. After Netflix aired the documentary series “Who Killed Malcolm X?” early last year, Vance’s office said it was taking a fresh look at the case.
As news of the exonerations reverberated, even New York City’s mayor said the public deserved more answers.
“I hope this doesn’t end the discussion,” Mayor Bill de Blasio said. “For millions and millions of Americans, we still need to know who killed Malcolm X and who ordered it.” Suggest a correctionMALCOLM X J. EDGAR HOOVER Popular in the CommunityAdChoices Sponsored
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All rights reserved.Log In Join HuffPost NEWS POLITICS ENTERTAINMENT LIFE PERSONAL SHOPPING VIDEO U.S. Edition ×CRIME Hoover Hid That Some Witnesses In Malcolm X Assassination Trial Were FBI Informants A Manhattan judge exonerated two men convicted of killing the revolutionary leader after decades of doubt about who was responsible for his 1965 death. Michael R. Sisak and Jennifer Peltz 11/18/2021 03:35pm EST | Updated an hour ago NEW YORK (AP) — More than half a century after the assassination of Malcolm X, two of his convicted killers were exonerated Thursday after decades of doubt about who was responsible for the civil rights icon’s death. Manhattan judge Ellen Biben dismissed the convictions of Muhammad Aziz and the late Khalil Islam, after prosecutors and the men’s lawyers said a renewed investigation found new evidence that the men were not involved with the killing and determined that authorities withheld some of what they knew. “The event that has brought us to court today should never have occurred,” Aziz, 83, told the court. He and Islam, who maintained their innocence from the start in the 1965 killing at Harlem’s Audubon Ballroom, were paroled in the 1980s. Islam died in 2009. Malcolm X gained national prominence as the voice of the Nation of Islam, exhorting Black people to claim their civil rights “by any means necessary.” His autobiography, written with Alex Haley, remains a classic work of modern American literature. Near the end of Malcolm X’s life, he split with the Black Muslim organization and, after a trip to Mecca, started speaking about the potential for racial unity. It earned him the ire of some in the Nation of Islam, who saw him as a traitor. He was shot to death while beginning a speech on Feb. 21, 1965. He was 39. Aziz and Islam, then known as Norman 3X Butler and Thomas 15X Johnson, and a third man were convicted of murder in March 1966. They were sentenced to life in prison. The third man, Mujahid Abdul Halim — also known as Talmadge Hayer and Thomas Hagan — admitted to shooting Malcolm X but said neither Aziz nor Islam was involved. The two offered alibis, and no physical evidence linked them to the crime. Halim was paroled in 2010. Through a relative, he declined to comment Thursday. He identified some other men as accomplices, but no one else has ever been held accountable for the crime. The recent investigation found information in FBI files about witnesses who couldn’t identify Islam and implicated other suspects, Manhattan District Attorney Cyrus Vance Jr. told the court. The files showed that the late FBI Director J. Edgar Hoover ordered agents to tell witnesses not to reveal that they were informants when talking with police and prosecutors, Vance said. Files from a recent investigation showed that the late FBI Director J. Edgar Hoover ordered agents to tell witnesses not to reveal that they were informants when talking with police and prosecutors about the assassination of Malcolm X, Manhattan District Attorney Cyrus Vance Jr. said on Thursday, Nov. 18, 2021. BETTMANN VIA GETTY IMAGES “I apologize for what were serious, unacceptable violations of law and the public trust,” he said. “There is one ultimate conclusion: Mr. Aziz and Mr. Islam were wrongfully convicted of this crime.” Innocence Project co-founder Barry Scheck, one of the lawyers for Aziz and for Islam’s family, said the review also found the FBI and police hid evidence from prosecutors, as what he called part of a plot to disrupt the Black civil rights movement. The FBI and New York Police Department had evidence of Aziz’s and Islam’s innocence within hours but ignored and suppressed it, said another of their attorneys, Deborah Francois, who works with civil rights attorney David Shanies. Biben said the case “cries out for fundamental justice.” The NYPD and the FBI said Wednesday that they had cooperated fully with the re-investigation. They declined to comment further. NYPD Chief of Patrol Juanita Holmes said Thursday she felt for Malcolm X’s family and for Aziz and Islam “if we are responsible for withholding information.” “I hope that we never revisit a scenario like this again,” she added. Attorneys, scholars and others have long raised questions about the convictions, and alternate theories and accusations have swirled around the case. After Netflix aired the documentary series “Who Killed Malcolm X?” early last year, Vance’s office said it was taking a fresh look at the case. As news of the exonerations reverberated, even New York City’s mayor said the public deserved more answers. “I hope this doesn’t end the discussion,” Mayor Bill de Blasio said. “For millions and millions of Americans, we still need to know who killed Malcolm X and who ordered it.” Suggest a correctionMALCOLM X J. EDGAR HOOVER Popular in the CommunityAdChoices Sponsored TRENDING Julius Jones Receives Clemency, Sparing His Life Just Hours Before Scheduled Execution Judge In Kyle Rittenhouse Murder Trial Bans MSNBC From Courthouse Josh Hawley, Manly Man Of The Senate Feds Indict Iranians In ‘False Flag’ Effort To Sow Fears About 2020 Election Integrity Texts Show Kimberly Guilfoyle Bragged About Raising Millions for Rally That Fueled Capitol Riot The Morning Email Wake up to the day’s most important news. Successfully Subscribed! 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All rights reserved.Log In Join HuffPost NEWS POLITICS ENTERTAINMENT LIFE PERSONAL SHOPPING VIDEO U.S. Edition ×CRIME Hoover Hid That Some Witnesses In Malcolm X Assassination Trial Were FBI Informants A Manhattan judge exonerated two men convicted of killing the revolutionary leader after decades of doubt about who was responsible for his 1965 death. Michael R. Sisak and Jennifer Peltz 11/18/2021 03:35pm EST | Updated an hour ago NEW YORK (AP) — More than half a century after the assassination of Malcolm X, two of his convicted killers were exonerated Thursday after decades of doubt about who was responsible for the civil rights icon’s death. Manhattan judge Ellen Biben dismissed the convictions of Muhammad Aziz and the late Khalil Islam, after prosecutors and the men’s lawyers said a renewed investigation found new evidence that the men were not involved with the killing and determined that authorities withheld some of what they knew. “The event that has brought us to court today should never have occurred,” Aziz, 83, told the court. He and Islam, who maintained their innocence from the start in the 1965 killing at Harlem’s Audubon Ballroom, were paroled in the 1980s. Islam died in 2009. Malcolm X gained national prominence as the voice of the Nation of Islam, exhorting Black people to claim their civil rights “by any means necessary.” His autobiography, written with Alex Haley, remains a classic work of modern American literature. Near the end of Malcolm X’s life, he split with the Black Muslim organization and, after a trip to Mecca, started speaking about the potential for racial unity. It earned him the ire of some in the Nation of Islam, who saw him as a traitor. He was shot to death while beginning a speech on Feb. 21, 1965. He was 39. Aziz and Islam, then known as Norman 3X Butler and Thomas 15X Johnson, and a third man were convicted of murder in March 1966. They were sentenced to life in prison. The third man, Mujahid Abdul Halim — also known as Talmadge Hayer and Thomas Hagan — admitted to shooting Malcolm X but said neither Aziz nor Islam was involved. The two offered alibis, and no physical evidence linked them to the crime. Halim was paroled in 2010. Through a relative, he declined to comment Thursday. He identified some other men as accomplices, but no one else has ever been held accountable for the crime. The recent investigation found information in FBI files about witnesses who couldn’t identify Islam and implicated other suspects, Manhattan District Attorney Cyrus Vance Jr. told the court. The files showed that the late FBI Director J. Edgar Hoover ordered agents to tell witnesses not to reveal that they were informants when talking with police and prosecutors, Vance said. Files from a recent investigation showed that the late FBI Director J. Edgar Hoover ordered agents to tell witnesses not to reveal that they were informants when talking with police and prosecutors about the assassination of Malcolm X, Manhattan District Attorney Cyrus Vance Jr. said on Thursday, Nov. 18, 2021. BETTMANN VIA GETTY IMAGES “I apologize for what were serious, unacceptable violations of law and the public trust,” he said. “There is one ultimate conclusion: Mr. Aziz and Mr. Islam were wrongfully convicted of this crime.” Innocence Project co-founder Barry Scheck, one of the lawyers for Aziz and for Islam’s family, said the review also found the FBI and police hid evidence from prosecutors, as what he called part of a plot to disrupt the Black civil rights movement. The FBI and New York Police Department had evidence of Aziz’s and Islam’s innocence within hours but ignored and suppressed it, said another of their attorneys, Deborah Francois, who works with civil rights attorney David Shanies. Biben said the case “cries out for fundamental justice.” The NYPD and the FBI said Wednesday that they had cooperated fully with the re-investigation. They declined to comment further. NYPD Chief of Patrol Juanita Holmes said Thursday she felt for Malcolm X’s family and for Aziz and Islam “if we are responsible for withholding information.” “I hope that we never revisit a scenario like this again,” she added. Attorneys, scholars and others have long raised questions about the convictions, and alternate theories and accusations have swirled around the case. After Netflix aired the documentary series “Who Killed Malcolm X?” early last year, Vance’s office said it was taking a fresh look at the case. As news of the exonerations reverberated, even New York City’s mayor said the public deserved more answers. “I hope this doesn’t end the discussion,” Mayor Bill de Blasio said. “For millions and millions of Americans, we still need to know who killed Malcolm X and who ordered it.” Suggest a correctionMALCOLM X J. EDGAR HOOVER Popular in the CommunityAdChoices Sponsored TRENDING Julius Jones Receives Clemency, Sparing His Life Just Hours Before Scheduled Execution Judge In Kyle Rittenhouse Murder Trial Bans MSNBC From Courthouse Josh Hawley, Manly Man Of The Senate Feds Indict Iranians In ‘False Flag’ Effort To Sow Fears About 2020 Election Integrity Texts Show Kimberly Guilfoyle Bragged About Raising Millions for Rally That Fueled Capitol Riot The Morning Email Wake up to the day’s most important news. Successfully Subscribed! 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All rights reserved.Log In Join HuffPost NEWS POLITICS ENTERTAINMENT LIFE PERSONAL SHOPPING VIDEO U.S. Edition ×CRIME Hoover Hid That Some Witnesses In Malcolm X Assassination Trial Were FBI Informants A Manhattan judge exonerated two men convicted of killing the revolutionary leader after decades of doubt about who was responsible for his 1965 death. Michael R. Sisak and Jennifer Peltz 11/18/2021 03:35pm EST | Updated an hour ago NEW YORK (AP) — More than half a century after the assassination of Malcolm X, two of his convicted killers were exonerated Thursday after decades of doubt about who was responsible for the civil rights icon’s death. Manhattan judge Ellen Biben dismissed the convictions of Muhammad Aziz and the late Khalil Islam, after prosecutors and the men’s lawyers said a renewed investigation found new evidence that the men were not involved with the killing and determined that authorities withheld some of what they knew. “The event that has brought us to court today should never have occurred,” Aziz, 83, told the court. He and Islam, who maintained their innocence from the start in the 1965 killing at Harlem’s Audubon Ballroom, were paroled in the 1980s. Islam died in 2009. Malcolm X gained national prominence as the voice of the Nation of Islam, exhorting Black people to claim their civil rights “by any means necessary.” His autobiography, written with Alex Haley, remains a classic work of modern American literature. Near the end of Malcolm X’s life, he split with the Black Muslim organization and, after a trip to Mecca, started speaking about the potential for racial unity. It earned him the ire of some in the Nation of Islam, who saw him as a traitor. He was shot to death while beginning a speech on Feb. 21, 1965. He was 39. Aziz and Islam, then known as Norman 3X Butler and Thomas 15X Johnson, and a third man were convicted of murder in March 1966. They were sentenced to life in prison. The third man, Mujahid Abdul Halim — also known as Talmadge Hayer and Thomas Hagan — admitted to shooting Malcolm X but said neither Aziz nor Islam was involved. The two offered alibis, and no physical evidence linked them to the crime. Halim was paroled in 2010. Through a relative, he declined to comment Thursday. He identified some other men as accomplices, but no one else has ever been held accountable for the crime. The recent investigation found information in FBI files about witnesses who couldn’t identify Islam and implicated other suspects, Manhattan District Attorney Cyrus Vance Jr. told the court. The files showed that the late FBI Director J. Edgar Hoover ordered agents to tell witnesses not to reveal that they were informants when talking with police and prosecutors, Vance said. Files from a recent investigation showed that the late FBI Director J. Edgar Hoover ordered agents to tell witnesses not to reveal that they were informants when talking with police and prosecutors about the assassination of Malcolm X, Manhattan District Attorney Cyrus Vance Jr. said on Thursday, Nov. 18, 2021. BETTMANN VIA GETTY IMAGES “I apologize for what were serious, unacceptable violations of law and the public trust,” he said. “There is one ultimate conclusion: Mr. Aziz and Mr. Islam were wrongfully convicted of this crime.” Innocence Project co-founder Barry Scheck, one of the lawyers for Aziz and for Islam’s family, said the review also found the FBI and police hid evidence from prosecutors, as what he called part of a plot to disrupt the Black civil rights movement. The FBI and New York Police Department had evidence of Aziz’s and Islam’s innocence within hours but ignored and suppressed it, said another of their attorneys, Deborah Francois, who works with civil rights attorney David Shanies. Biben said the case “cries out for fundamental justice.” The NYPD and the FBI said Wednesday that they had cooperated fully with the re-investigation. They declined to comment further. NYPD Chief of Patrol Juanita Holmes said Thursday she felt for Malcolm X’s family and for Aziz and Islam “if we are responsible for withholding information.” “I hope that we never revisit a scenario like this again,” she added. Attorneys, scholars and others have long raised questions about the convictions, and alternate theories and accusations have swirled around the case. After Netflix aired the documentary series “Who Killed Malcolm X?” early last year, Vance’s office said it was taking a fresh look at the case. As news of the exonerations reverberated, even New York City’s mayor said the public deserved more answers. “I hope this doesn’t end the discussion,” Mayor Bill de Blasio said. “For millions and millions of Americans, we still need to know who killed Malcolm X and who ordered it.” Suggest a correctionMALCOLM X J. EDGAR HOOVER Popular in the CommunityAdChoices Sponsored TRENDING Julius Jones Receives Clemency, Sparing His Life Just Hours Before Scheduled Execution Judge In Kyle Rittenhouse Murder Trial Bans MSNBC From Courthouse Josh Hawley, Manly Man Of The Senate Feds Indict Iranians In ‘False Flag’ Effort To Sow Fears About 2020 Election Integrity Texts Show Kimberly Guilfoyle Bragged About Raising Millions for Rally That Fueled Capitol Riot The Morning Email Wake up to the day’s most important news. Successfully Subscribed! Realness delivered to your inbox Our CommunityAdChoices Sponsored3,715 Comments posted on HuffPost today CommentYou May Like These Teachers Left Their Students Speechless Fresh Edit · Ad Interviewer Was Not Expecting This Savage Response Boredom Therapy · Ad Man Who Found ‘Gold’ Is In Awe To Learn Its Value Eternally Sunny · Ad Historians Still Cannot Explain This Photo GotGravy Lifestyle · Ad The Cast Of Gunsmoke: Then And Now Honest To Paws · Ad It’s Time To Pack Your Holiday Wish List With These lululemon Essentials HuffPost Smart Homes Are No Longer A Gimmick — They’re The Only Way Forward HuffPost This Is Why You Should Cut Your Hair After 50 StyleBistro · Ad Who Was The Beauty Icon The Year You Were Born? Past Factory · Ad Roy Roger’s Daughter Shares How Her Dad Really Was MyDailyMagazine · Ad 10 Food That Unclogs Arteries (Most People Ignore) HealthyGem · Ad I Can’t Believe She Did THIS On Live TV… YourSportSpot · Ad Partial Lunar Eclipse Starts Around 1 a.m. Eastern And Will Be Around For Hours HuffPost Twitter Users Are Cackling Over DC Reporter’s Over-The-Top Vandalism Segment HuffPost Kim Kardashian And Pete Davidson Are Officially Dating: Reports HuffPost WHAT’S HOT As A Sex Worker, I Made A Living Off Femininity. Then I Started Questioning My Gender. What It Really Feels Like To Get A COVID Booster Shot Seth Rogen And Nick Offerman Are The Absolute Worst In ‘Pam & Tommy’ First Look Ciara’s Toddler Steals The Show At White House To Promote Vaccines For Kids MORE IN CRIME Police In Memphis Hunt For Suspects In Young Dolph’s Killing Cops Seek New Attempted Murder Charges Against Chad And Lori Vallow Daybell Charlottesville Plaintiffs Request $3-10 Million In Damages Each Steve Bannon Pleads Not Guilty To Contempt Of Congress ChargesNEWS POLITICS ENTERTAINMENT LIFE COMMUNITIES HUFFPOST PERSONAL VIDEO NEWSLETTERS HUFFPOST ABOUT US ADVERTISE CONTACT US RSS FAQ CAREERS ARCHIVE USER AGREEMENT COMMENT POLICY HUFFPOST PRESS ROOM PRIVACY POLICY DMCA POLICY CONSENT PREFERENCES DO NOT SELL MY PERSONAL INFORMATION Part of HuffPost Crime. ©2021 BuzzFeed, Inc. All rights reserved. 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All rights reserved.Log In Join HuffPost NEWS POLITICS ENTERTAINMENT LIFE PERSONAL SHOPPING VIDEO U.S. Edition ×CRIME Hoover Hid That Some Witnesses In Malcolm X Assassination Trial Were FBI Informants A Manhattan judge exonerated two men convicted of killing the revolutionary leader after decades of doubt about who was responsible for his 1965 death. Michael R. Sisak and Jennifer Peltz 11/18/2021 03:35pm EST | Updated an hour ago NEW YORK (AP) — More than half a century after the assassination of Malcolm X, two of his convicted killers were exonerated Thursday after decades of doubt about who was responsible for the civil rights icon’s death. Manhattan judge Ellen Biben dismissed the convictions of Muhammad Aziz and the late Khalil Islam, after prosecutors and the men’s lawyers said a renewed investigation found new evidence that the men were not involved with the killing and determined that authorities withheld some of what they knew. “The event that has brought us to court today should never have occurred,” Aziz, 83, told the court. He and Islam, who maintained their innocence from the start in the 1965 killing at Harlem’s Audubon Ballroom, were paroled in the 1980s. Islam died in 2009. Malcolm X gained national prominence as the voice of the Nation of Islam, exhorting Black people to claim their civil rights “by any means necessary.” His autobiography, written with Alex Haley, remains a classic work of modern American literature. Near the end of Malcolm X’s life, he split with the Black Muslim organization and, after a trip to Mecca, started speaking about the potential for racial unity. It earned him the ire of some in the Nation of Islam, who saw him as a traitor. He was shot to death while beginning a speech on Feb. 21, 1965. He was 39. Aziz and Islam, then known as Norman 3X Butler and Thomas 15X Johnson, and a third man were convicted of murder in March 1966. They were sentenced to life in prison. The third man, Mujahid Abdul Halim — also known as Talmadge Hayer and Thomas Hagan — admitted to shooting Malcolm X but said neither Aziz nor Islam was involved. The two offered alibis, and no physical evidence linked them to the crime. Halim was paroled in 2010. Through a relative, he declined to comment Thursday. He identified some other men as accomplices, but no one else has ever been held accountable for the crime. The recent investigation found information in FBI files about witnesses who couldn’t identify Islam and implicated other suspects, Manhattan District Attorney Cyrus Vance Jr. told the court. The files showed that the late FBI Director J. Edgar Hoover ordered agents to tell witnesses not to reveal that they were informants when talking with police and prosecutors, Vance said. Files from a recent investigation showed that the late FBI Director J. Edgar Hoover ordered agents to tell witnesses not to reveal that they were informants when talking with police and prosecutors about the assassination of Malcolm X, Manhattan District Attorney Cyrus Vance Jr. said on Thursday, Nov. 18, 2021. BETTMANN VIA GETTY IMAGES “I apologize for what were serious, unacceptable violations of law and the public trust,” he said. “There is one ultimate conclusion: Mr. Aziz and Mr. Islam were wrongfully convicted of this crime.” Innocence Project co-founder Barry Scheck, one of the lawyers for Aziz and for Islam’s family, said the review also found the FBI and police hid evidence from prosecutors, as what he called part of a plot to disrupt the Black civil rights movement. The FBI and New York Police Department had evidence of Aziz’s and Islam’s innocence within hours but ignored and suppressed it, said another of their attorneys, Deborah Francois, who works with civil rights attorney David Shanies. Biben said the case “cries out for fundamental justice.” The NYPD and the FBI said Wednesday that they had cooperated fully with the re-investigation. They declined to comment further. NYPD Chief of Patrol Juanita Holmes said Thursday she felt for Malcolm X’s family and for Aziz and Islam “if we are responsible for withholding information.” “I hope that we never revisit a scenario like this again,” she added. Attorneys, scholars and others have long raised questions about the convictions, and alternate theories and accusations have swirled around the case. After Netflix aired the documentary series “Who Killed Malcolm X?” early last year, Vance’s office said it was taking a fresh look at the case. As news of the exonerations reverberated, even New York City’s mayor said the public deserved more answers. “I hope this doesn’t end the discussion,” Mayor Bill de Blasio said. “For millions and millions of Americans, we still need to know who killed Malcolm X and who ordered it.” Suggest a correctionMALCOLM X J. EDGAR HOOVER Popular in the CommunityAdChoices Sponsored TRENDING Julius Jones Receives Clemency, Sparing His Life Just Hours Before Scheduled Execution Judge In Kyle Rittenhouse Murder Trial Bans MSNBC From Courthouse Josh Hawley, Manly Man Of The Senate Feds Indict Iranians In ‘False Flag’ Effort To Sow Fears About 2020 Election Integrity Texts Show Kimberly Guilfoyle Bragged About Raising Millions for Rally That Fueled Capitol Riot The Morning Email Wake up to the day’s most important news. Successfully Subscribed! 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The Huffington Post NEWSU.S. News World News Business Environment Health Coronavirus Social Justice POLITICS Joe Biden Congress Extremism ENTERTAINMENT Culture & Arts Media Celebrity TV & Film LIFE Style & Beauty Food & Drink Parenting Travel Wellness Relationships Money Home & Living Work/Life Shopping COMMUNITIES Queer Voices Women Black Voices Latino Voices Asian Voices SPECIAL PROJECTS Highline HUFFPOST PERSONAL VIDEO HOROSCOPES FROM OUR PARTNERS The Legacy Lives On NEWSLETTERS INTERNATIONAL Australia Brazil Canada España France Ελλάδα (Greece) India Italia 日本 (Japan) 한국 (Korea) Québec U.K. U.S. Follow UsTerms | Privacy Policy Part of HuffPost Crime. ©2021 BuzzFeed, Inc. All rights reserved.Log In Join HuffPost NEWS POLITICS ENTERTAINMENT LIFE PERSONAL SHOPPING VIDEO U.S. Edition ×CRIME Hoover Hid That Some Witnesses In Malcolm X Assassination Trial Were FBI Informants A Manhattan judge exonerated two men convicted of killing the revolutionary leader after decades of doubt about who was responsible for his 1965 death. Michael R. Sisak and Jennifer Peltz 11/18/2021 03:35pm EST | Updated an hour ago NEW YORK (AP) — More than half a century after the assassination of Malcolm X, two of his convicted killers were exonerated Thursday after decades of doubt about who was responsible for the civil rights icon’s death. Manhattan judge Ellen Biben dismissed the convictions of Muhammad Aziz and the late Khalil Islam, after prosecutors and the men’s lawyers said a renewed investigation found new evidence that the men were not involved with the killing and determined that authorities withheld some of what they knew. “The event that has brought us to court today should never have occurred,” Aziz, 83, told the court. He and Islam, who maintained their innocence from the start in the 1965 killing at Harlem’s Audubon Ballroom, were paroled in the 1980s. Islam died in 2009. Malcolm X gained national prominence as the voice of the Nation of Islam, exhorting Black people to claim their civil rights “by any means necessary.” His autobiography, written with Alex Haley, remains a classic work of modern American literature. Near the end of Malcolm X’s life, he split with the Black Muslim organization and, after a trip to Mecca, started speaking about the potential for racial unity. It earned him the ire of some in the Nation of Islam, who saw him as a traitor. He was shot to death while beginning a speech on Feb. 21, 1965. He was 39. Aziz and Islam, then known as Norman 3X Butler and Thomas 15X Johnson, and a third man were convicted of murder in March 1966. They were sentenced to life in prison. The third man, Mujahid Abdul Halim — also known as Talmadge Hayer and Thomas Hagan — admitted to shooting Malcolm X but said neither Aziz nor Islam was involved. The two offered alibis, and no physical evidence linked them to the crime. Halim was paroled in 2010. Through a relative, he declined to comment Thursday. He identified some other men as accomplices, but no one else has ever been held accountable for the crime. The recent investigation found information in FBI files about witnesses who couldn’t identify Islam and implicated other suspects, Manhattan District Attorney Cyrus Vance Jr. told the court. The files showed that the late FBI Director J. Edgar Hoover ordered agents to tell witnesses not to reveal that they were informants when talking with police and prosecutors, Vance said. Files from a recent investigation showed that the late FBI Director J. Edgar Hoover ordered agents to tell witnesses not to reveal that they were informants when talking with police and prosecutors about the assassination of Malcolm X, Manhattan District Attorney Cyrus Vance Jr. said on Thursday, Nov. 18, 2021. BETTMANN VIA GETTY IMAGES “I apologize for what were serious, unacceptable violations of law and the public trust,” he said. “There is one ultimate conclusion: Mr. Aziz and Mr. Islam were wrongfully convicted of this crime.” Innocence Project co-founder Barry Scheck, one of the lawyers for Aziz and for Islam’s family, said the review also found the FBI and police hid evidence from prosecutors, as what he called part of a plot to disrupt the Black civil rights movement. The FBI and New York Police Department had evidence of Aziz’s and Islam’s innocence within hours but ignored and suppressed it, said another of their attorneys, Deborah Francois, who works with civil rights attorney David Shanies. Biben said the case “cries out for fundamental justice.” The NYPD and the FBI said Wednesday that they had cooperated fully with the re-investigation. They declined to comment further. NYPD Chief of Patrol Juanita Holmes said Thursday she felt for Malcolm X’s family and for Aziz and Islam “if we are responsible for withholding information.” “I hope that we never revisit a scenario like this again,” she added. Attorneys, scholars and others have long raised questions about the convictions, and alternate theories and accusations have swirled around the case. After Netflix aired the documentary series “Who Killed Malcolm X?” early last year, Vance’s office said it was taking a fresh look at the case. As news of the exonerations reverberated, even New York City’s mayor said the public deserved more answers. “I hope this doesn’t end the discussion,” Mayor Bill de Blasio said. “For millions and millions of Americans, we still need to know who killed Malcolm X and who ordered it.” Suggest a correctionMALCOLM X J. EDGAR HOOVER Popular in the CommunityAdChoices Sponsored TRENDING Julius Jones Receives Clemency, Sparing His Life Just Hours Before Scheduled Execution Judge In Kyle Rittenhouse Murder Trial Bans MSNBC From Courthouse Josh Hawley, Manly Man Of The Senate Feds Indict Iranians In ‘False Flag’ Effort To Sow Fears About 2020 Election Integrity Texts Show Kimberly Guilfoyle Bragged About Raising Millions for Rally That Fueled Capitol Riot The Morning Email Wake up to the day’s most important news. Successfully Subscribed! Realness delivered to your inbox Our CommunityAdChoices Sponsored3,715 Comments posted on HuffPost today CommentYou May Like These Teachers Left Their Students Speechless Fresh Edit · Ad Interviewer Was Not Expecting This Savage Response Boredom Therapy · Ad Man Who Found ‘Gold’ Is In Awe To Learn Its Value Eternally Sunny · Ad Historians Still Cannot Explain This Photo GotGravy Lifestyle · Ad The Cast Of Gunsmoke: Then And Now Honest To Paws · Ad It’s Time To Pack Your Holiday Wish List With These lululemon Essentials HuffPost Smart Homes Are No Longer A Gimmick — They’re The Only Way Forward HuffPost This Is Why You Should Cut Your Hair After 50 StyleBistro · Ad Who Was The Beauty Icon The Year You Were Born? Past Factory · Ad Roy Roger’s Daughter Shares How Her Dad Really Was MyDailyMagazine · Ad 10 Food That Unclogs Arteries (Most People Ignore) HealthyGem · Ad I Can’t Believe She Did THIS On Live TV… YourSportSpot · Ad Partial Lunar Eclipse Starts Around 1 a.m. Eastern And Will Be Around For Hours HuffPost Twitter Users Are Cackling Over DC Reporter’s Over-The-Top Vandalism Segment HuffPost Kim Kardashian And Pete Davidson Are Officially Dating: Reports HuffPost WHAT’S HOT As A Sex Worker, I Made A Living Off Femininity. Then I Started Questioning My Gender. What It Really Feels Like To Get A COVID Booster Shot Seth Rogen And Nick Offerman Are The Absolute Worst In ‘Pam & Tommy’ First Look Ciara’s Toddler Steals The Show At White House To Promote Vaccines For Kids MORE IN CRIME Police In Memphis Hunt For Suspects In Young Dolph’s Killing Cops Seek New Attempted Murder Charges Against Chad And Lori Vallow Daybell Charlottesville Plaintiffs Request $3-10 Million In Damages Each Steve Bannon Pleads Not Guilty To Contempt Of Congress ChargesNEWS POLITICS ENTERTAINMENT LIFE COMMUNITIES HUFFPOST PERSONAL VIDEO NEWSLETTERS HUFFPOST ABOUT US ADVERTISE CONTACT US RSS FAQ CAREERS ARCHIVE USER AGREEMENT COMMENT POLICY HUFFPOST PRESS ROOM PRIVACY POLICY DMCA POLICY CONSENT PREFERENCES DO NOT SELL MY PERSONAL INFORMATION Part of HuffPost Crime. ©2021 BuzzFeed, Inc. All rights reserved. The Huffington Post