Man Wrongfully Accused Of Murdering Sister, Mother Suing New York City
NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) - A man from Brooklyn who spent 22 years locked up for murdering his mother and sister while the real killer ran free is now suing the New York City.
In 1992, Antonio Yarbough found his mother, 12-year-old sister and another girl stabbed and strangled in their Coney Island home. Soon, he found himself accused; detectives fed him information and had him sign a false confession, his lawyer Zachary Margulis-Ohnuma told WCBS 880's Alex Silverman.
Man Wrongfully Accused Of Murdering Sister, Mother Suing NYC
"Because they decided to blame Tony rather than solve the crime, they let the real killers go free and seven years later, he raped and murdered someone else," he said.
DNA finally cleared Yarbough 22 years later.
"He's just trying to get on with his life," Margulis-Ohnuma said.
The case was just one of many from the 1980s and '90s being reviewed for wrongful conviction in the Brooklyn District Attorney's office, due to possible coerced confessions and witness intimidation.
The lawsuit doesn't ask for a specific amount, Silverman reported.
"The city settled a Central Park Five case for amounts that worked out to $1 million a year. In my heart, I don't know that that's really enough, but I can't imagine a jury coming back for less than that," Margulis-Ohnuma said.
The city has not yet commented on the lawsuit.
