Kris Maharaj: British businessman dies in prison despite US judge finding him innocent
An 85-year-old British citizen, put on death row despite later being proven innocent by a judge, died while still a prisoner in Florida, according to his lawyer.
Trinidad-born Kris Maharaj was convicted by a Florida court in 1986 for the double murders of father and son Derrick and Duane Moo Young in a Miami hotel room.
He passed away "after 38 years fighting injustice," human rights lawyer Clive Stafford Smith said in a post on X.
His lawyer acknowledged Maharaj's wife who "braves the New World without Kris, making me breakfast this morning as a distraction".
He noted that Maharaj's body will be returned to England as per the wishes of Maharaj and his wife, and said the funeral will take place in Bridport "in due course".
For years Maharaj fought hard for his innocence, insisting that he was framed for the murders, despite prosecutors claiming he killed the two men because they owed him money.
He had some business relations with one of the murder victims, Derrick Moo Young, whom he said defrauded him of $400,000 (£315,000). Maharaj was suing him over the affair when Young was killed.
Young and his son Duane were found dead in the hotel on the same day that Maharaj went to meet a business associate, who he said never turned up.
In 2019, a judge ruled he had proven his innocence, but the original verdict was never overturned. As such he spent his final days behind bars.
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Prior to his sentencing, Maharaj moved to England in 1960 and was a self-made millionaire and made his fortune importing bananas into the UK.
He enjoyed a lavish lifestyle and was a fan of Rolls-Royce cars and owner of many racehorses, then he went to Florida with his wife to buy a retirement home.
In an interview with ITV News in 2014, Maharaj said: "I am ashamed to say that I used not to spare a thought for those in prison. I was rich. I had everything life could offer. I did not appreciate just how fortunate I was."
Reflecting on his conviction, he said he was so shocked he actually fainted as he "could not comprehend what had happened". Despite decades without his liberty, he said he did not blame the jurors, as they were "duped" by the trial.
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