Baltimore prosecutors are asking a judge to vacate Adnan Syed’s conviction for the 1999 murder of Hae Min Lee, a case that was turned into the hit first season of the podcast “Serial.” A government motion filed Wednesday said that a nearly yearlong investigation found new evidence, including information concerning the possible involvement of two alternative suspects, reports the Wall Street Journal. Prosecutors are requesting a new trial, not saying Syed is innocent. The state "no longer has confidence in the integrity of the conviction,” said Baltimore State’s Attorney Marilyn Mosby, whose office recommends Syed be released on his own recognizance.
Syed has been serving a life sentence for his 2000 conviction for strangling Lee, his ex-girlfriend. He was 17 years and was charged as an adult. Syed has maintained he is innocent. Both the 2014 “Serial” podcast and a later HBO documentary raised questions about his conviction. In 2018, a special appeals court ruled Syed deserved a new trial, but that was reversed by Maryland’s highest court. Prosecutors said in the new court filing there is evidence suggesting there are two suspects who may have been involved, either separately or together. The suspects were known at the time of the first investigation but not properly ruled out, prosecutors said. One suspect reportedly said “he would make [Lee] disappear. He would kill her."