Man spent 21 years in prison for crime he didn't commit, dies after 1 year of freedom

theGRIO REPORT - Man spent 21 years in prison for crime he didn't commit, dies after one year of freedom..

Jan 12, 2015

A Harlem man who was wrongfully jailed for 21 years died on Saturday, less than a year after he was released, according to the New York Daily News.

Sharrif Wilson, 38, and Antonio Yarbough, 40, spent decades locked away for the grisly murder of Yarbough’s mother, 12-year-old sister, and another 12-year-old.

Saturday night, Wilson died in what officials are saying was caused by his “breathing problems.”

Wilson had confessed and testified against Yarbough in exchange for a lighter sentence but recanted his testimony later and claimed that he had been coerced by police into confessing.

In February, the pair were released in light of new evidence, including DNA found on Yarbough’s mother that matched 1999 killings.

Wilson’s family said that he had been working hard to reintegrate himself into society and that he was fascinated with the new technology and social media available to him in the outside world.

Wilson emerged from prison suffering from acute respiratory distress syndrome, a problem only made worse during his time in prison. “He was a young healthy man when he went in and he was a sick unhealthy man when he came out,” his lawyer, Adam Perlmutter, said.

Wilson was hospitalized in December because he was having trouble breathing and remained there until his death.