British man gets chance to prove innocence in ’86 killings

MIAMI – A British businessman imprisoned for 30 years for two killings at a Miami hotel will get a new chance to prove his innocence.

The attorney for 78-year-old Kris Maharaj said Tuesday a federal judge will consider his claims that new evidence shows the killings were actually committed by members of Pablo Escobar’s Medellin cocaine cartel. Several other judges have previously upheld Maharaj’s conviction.

Maharaj is serving a life sentence for the slayings of Derrick and Duane Moo Young, who were gunned down in a Miami hotel room in 1986. The 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals recently granted Maharaj the right to pursue his innocence claims anew based on recently discovered evidence showing the Medellin cartel’s involvement.

Maharaj attorney Clive Stafford Smith says the hearing will centre on this evidence.