MIAMI (CBSMiami) – On Wednesday, an ex-Miami cop continued his testimony in defense of a convicted British murderer who insists he was framed by police.
Michael Flynn told jurors on Monday that Krishna Maharaj was wrongfully implicated for a 1986 double murder at the Dupont Plaza Hotel in downtown Miami.
According to Flynn, the Colombian drug cartel was behind the slayings of Derrick Moo Young and Moo Young’s son, Duane, at the Dupont. He said drugs dealers had a lot of influence on the police department.
As reported by CBS4’s news partner the Miami Herald, Flynn’s only source for the information was another police officer who has since died. His story could be refuted by the possible testimony of another prison inmate, William Hawley, who has served as a jailhouse informant in numerous cases.
British lawyer Clive Stafford Smith and Defense Attorney Ben Kuehne agree with Flynn’s testament that the Colombian drug cartel was involved. The pair insist then-Colombian Cartel kingpin Pablo Escobar ordered Derrick Moo Young’s slaying because the man had been stealing money from him during a money-laundering operation.
It was the era of the Miami River cops when police and dope dealers were hard to tell apart.
“We had corrupt police officers. We had coordination with drug dealers. Things were very different,” said Kuehne
The defense is asking for a new trial.
The prosecution isn’t buying it. They said the cartel of old openly flaunted killing enemies to send a message.
The victims’ relatives are also convinced Maharaj did it.
“I still believe in our judicial system and I think he is guilty,” said Shaula-Ann Nagel, the daughter and sister of the victims.
Maharaj’s wife, Marita, stood by him in court just as she did 28-years ago.
“I love him and I know he is innocent. I don’t think that he is innocent. I know it for a fact that he’s innocent,” said Marita Maharaj.
Britain is riveted to this drama.
“There are suspicions in Britain that this is an innocent man who’d been framed,” said Tim Samuels with the BBC television channel.
At his original trial, jurors heard that Maharaj, now 75, killed the men because of a long-running business dispute.
Fingerprints in the hotel room tied Maharaj to the scene, as did an eyewitness who testified to seeing him pull the trigger. Witnesses also told jurors that Maharaj, at a Denny’s dinner after the homicide, tried to concoct an alibi.
But on Wednesday, another man testified saying an eye witness who claimed he saw Maharaj pull the trigger told him there were multiple gunman that night in the old Dupont Hotel room. That’s evidence the original jury never heard.
In October, Hawley told investigators that Maharaj, in prison, confided he was looking to pay ex-Miami cops in prison to draft affidavits saying he was framed. Hawley claimed he came forward to authorities only after seeing Maharaj’s case profile on CNN.
Src: https://miami.cbslocal.com/2014/11/12/ex-miami-cop-continues-testimony-for-british-convicted-murderer/