Mon 22 February 2021:
The family of Malcolm X want his murder investigation to be reopened after allegedly uncovering evidence that implicates the NYPD and FBI in his death.
The civil rights leader was assassinated on February 21, 1965, at the Audubon Ballroom in Washington Heights, New York, during a public address. The three attackers, all Nation of Islam members, one of whom shot him in the chest with a sawed-off shotgun, were arrested and sentenced to life in prison.
“Any evidence that provides greater insight into the truth behind that terrible tragedy should be thoroughly investigated,” Ilyasah Shabazz, one of Malcolm X’s daughters, said in a press conference on Saturday.
Shabazz was referring to a deathbed letter left by a former policeman who had been on the force during the 1965 killing. In the letter, the officer, Raymond Wood, recounted that he had been part of a cover-up plot by the New York Police Department (NYPD) and FBI.
Wood’s letter claims that the NYPD and the FBI obscured details of the murder and that his task was to ensure that there was nobody to guard the entrance where the activist was scheduled to make a public address.
He became known as a hero to both Black Americans and the Islamic world in his pursuit of a post-colonial identity and is remembered by many as an icon in the struggle for freedom, equality and justice.
“Several months ago, the Manhattan district attorney initiated a review of the investigation and prosecution that resulted in two convictions for the murder of Malcolm X,” the NYPD responded to the call of the family in a statement.
“The NYPD has provided all available records relevant to that case to the district attorney. The department remains committed to assist with that review in any way,” it added.
The FBI has yet to offer a public comment on the matter.
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