Three men convicted in 1995 NY murder of Harry Kaufman were released after serving decades in prison
3 min readAfter spending decades in prison for the murder of New York clerk Harry Kaufman, three men have been freed.
Harry Kaufman: What happened to him?
The judge exonerated Vincent Ellerbe, James Irons, and Thomas Malik of murder charges last week on July 15. After the prosecution pointed out that the case was based on false confessions, shoddy witness identification, and other suspect data. One of the most violent crimes in New York throughout the 1990s was the murder of Harry Kaufman. According to reports, the victim, Harry Kaufman, was set on fire in a subway toll booth.
But Kuby has to be called on his comment that only his clients suffered any consequences from this entire incident.
— pete from manhattan (@pete_manhattan) July 16, 2022
Harry Kaufman’s wife has lived w/o a husband for 28 yrs. Harry Kaufman’s son has grown up w/o a father for 28 yrs, while his killer has roamed free for 28 yrs.Advertisement
Ellerbe addressed the court of their incarceration
All three of the males, who were minors at the time, admitted to the murder in 1995 and were ultimately found guilty of it. The trio asserted they were forced into making the same confession, nevertheless. Ellerbe spoke to the court about their time behind bars and said: “There is no way to undo what has happened to us. They either destroy you or transform you into a monster.” Mallik explained his experience as follows: “Unquestionably, it is already far too late, but everything takes time. Just being able to stand tall made me joyful.” Irons simply remarked that he “felt fantastic” about having his conviction thrown out.
NEW: Following a thorough investigati on by our Conviction Review Unit, I will move to vacate the convictions of James Irons, Thomas Malik & Vincent Ellerbe for the 1995 murder of token booth clerk Harry Kaufman.
This is the 33rd exoneration by our CRU. https://t.co/3fbRSIUF1kpic.twitter.com/gSZiIa6Ydk— DA Eric Gonzalez (@BrooklynDA) July 15, 2022Advertisement
Harry Kaufman, 50, worked a night shift on Kingston Avenue and Fulton Street in Bedford-Stuyvesant on November 26, 1995. After attempting to rob him, the attackers shot gasoline through the tollbooth’s coin slot. They then used matches to light the fuel while Harry Kaufman begged them not to, according to reports at the time.
Harry Kaufman was forced to flee while being engulfed
Kaufman was forced to flee while being engulfed in flames as a result of the booth exploding as a result. Within two weeks, he passed away. Father of two, Harry Kaufman was married. Following the occurrence, comparisons were made between the brutality of the murder. And a sequence from the recently released movie Money Train. Irons is said to have admitted during questioning by the police. That he was only serving as a lookout while Malik and Ellerbe really set Kaufman on fire.