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Malcolm X's family plan to sue FBI, CIA, NYPD for his death

Getty Images HIs family announced the lawsuit at the memorial where he was killed 58 years agoGetty Images
HIs family announced the lawsuit at the memorial where he was killed 58 years ago

A daughter of murdered black civil rights activist Malcolm X says she is suing New York City Police Department and other agencies for his 1965 murder.

Ilyasah Shabazz says US officials fraudulently concealed evidence that they "conspired to and executed their plan to assassinate" her father.

She announced the planned legal action at the site where he was fatally shot in New York exactly 58 years ago.

The FBI and CIA were also named in the legal filing, a lawyer said.

Mrs Shabazz, 60, was two years old when she saw her father gunned down. Three armed men shot him 21 times as he was preparing to speak at a Harlem auditorium.

"For years, our family has fought for the truth to come to light concerning his murder," she said on Tuesday at the venue, which has since been converted into a memorial site, as she filed notices of claims, a precursor to a lawsuit.

Getty Images Ilyasah Shabazz, seen with her father the year before his deathGetty Images
Ilyasah Shabazz, seen with her father the year before his death

At the news conference, Benjamin Crump - the lawyer who is representing the family - alleged that powerful figures in the American government had conspired to kill Malcolm X.

He mentioned former FBI Director J Edgar Hoover throughout his remarks.

Mr Crump said Malcolm X's family intends to file a wrongful death lawsuit seeking damages in the range of $100m (£83m).

"It's not just about the triggermen," he said. "It's about those who conspired with the triggermen to do this dastardly deed."

The NYPD told the BBC it would not comment on pending litigation. The FBI and CIA did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Malcolm X was a lead spokesman for the Nation of Islam - which advocated separatism for black Americans - before his acrimonious split from the organisation. He was 39 when he was killed.

One man, a Nation of Islam member, confessed to killing him.

In 2021, two other men convicted of killing him had their convictions thrown out after a New York state judge declared there had been a miscarriage of justice.

The two men were later fully exonerated after New York's attorney general found prosecutors had withheld evidence that would have probably cleared them of the murder.

Family of the wrongly convicted men sued and won $26m from New York City and $10m from New York state.