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A Philadelphia man who was exonerated and given a $4.1 million settlement after serving 24 years in prison for a murder conviction that was dropped is headed back to prison — for a separate killing.
Shaurn Thomas — who was freed from a life sentence in 2017 after his 1992 murder conviction was overturned — pleaded guilty last Thursday to a 2023 slaying, The Philadelphia Inquirer reported.
Thomas, 50, was convicted of gunning down his girlfriend’s friend, Akeem Edwards, last year after the 38-year-old father allegedly failed to pay out $1,200 for the cocaine Thomas gave him to sell, according to the local paper.
The judge at the plea hearing appeared nearly stunned by the facts of the case — that a multi-millionaire who spent nearly half his life in prison would risk being sent back over a comparably measly amount of cash, the Inquirer reported.
“Are these facts true?” Common Pleas Court Judge Roxanne Covington asked Thomas Thursday.
“Yes, Your Honor,” he replied.
In addition to the murder charge, Thomas pleaded guilty to conspiracy, illegal gun possession and other crimes.
Edwards’ family members told the Inquirer they hope his killer gets sent back to prison for the rest of his life at his sentencing scheduled for February.
“There’s not enough time for them to possibly give him,” Edwards’ sister, Tyeisha Marshall, told the newspaper.
Thomas had already been sentenced to life in prison once when he was just 20 years old before his conviction was overturned.
At the time, a jury convicted him of second-degree murder for the 1990 shooting death of a North Philadephia businessman in a robbery gone wrong, according to the local publication.
But a judge vacated his conviction in 2017 after issues with the police investigation — including the failure to verify his alleged alibi — and interrogation tactics involving alleged coconspirators were unearthed. The Pennsylvania Innocence Project helped secure Thomas’ freedom.
Prosecutors said they weren’t 100% convinced that Thomas was completely innocent of the killing, but the Philadelphia District Attorney’s Office declined to retry his case, the Inquirer reported.
