A 48-year-old Manhattan man who spent more than half his life behind bars for the shooting death of a retired NYPD detective was freed Monday after he was cleared by new DNA evidence.
“As alleged, Myles Utz attacked two strangers in antisemitic incidents just minutes apart,” said District Attorney Bragg. “This alleged conduct is unacceptable, and we will continue working closely with our law enforcement partners to hold people accountable who target Manhattanites in hate-based acts of violence. During this time of increased threats and acts of violence against Manhattan’s Jewish community, I encourage anyone who believes they have been a victim of a hate crime to call 911 or report it to our Office’s Hate Crimes Unit at 212-335-3100.”
Jon-Adrian “JJ” Velazquez, who recently appeared in the movie Sing Sing, had his conviction overturned Monday, after being wrongfully imprisoned for murder for decades.
“JJ Velazquez has lived in the shadow of his conviction for more than 25 years, and I hope that today brings with it a new chapter for him,” said District Attorney Bragg. “I am grateful to our Post-Conviction Justice Unit for its commitment to impartially uncovering the facts and evidence in this case. Since the creation of the Unit in 2022 we have vacated 10 convictions through reinvestigations and 500 more related to law enforcement members convicted of misconduct. These convictions have deep consequences for individuals and their loved ones, compromise public safety, and undermine trust in the criminal justice system, which is why this work is of the utmost importance to me. We will continue to review these types of cases with the thoroughness and fairness they require.”
A 28-year-old woman will spend decades in prison after admitting to the gruesome murder of a 64-year-old antiques dealer whose body was discovered by a friend inside his Upper East Side apartment with his throat slit more than four years ago.
