Wrongfully Imprisoned: 23 years, 7 months, 8 days.
WRONGFULLY CONVICTED OF MURDER · INNOCENT ALL ALONG
Jon-Adrian “JJ” Velazquez was wrongfully convicted of killing retired NYPD officer Albert Ward during a robbery inside an illegal Harlem gambling joint. The shooter was not JJ. No physical evidence tied him to the scene, phone records supported his alibi, and witnesses described a different man. JJ was wrongfully imprisoned for exactly 23 years, 7 months, and 8 days.
JJ on exoneration day · September 30, 2024THE CASE
On January 27, 1998, 59-year-old Albert Ward—a retired New York City police officer—was killed during a robbery inside an illegal gambling joint, a numbers operation in Harlem. His death was real and devastating. So was the injustice that followed: six days later, JJ voluntarily went to the precinct, participated in a lineup, and was arrested as the case narrowed around him despite contradictory descriptions, alibi evidence, missing physical evidence, and alternate leads.
Two armed men robbed an illegal gambling joint—a numbers operation—at 2335 Eighth Avenue. Ward, a 59-year-old retired NYPD officer, was shot and killed inside. Witnesses initially described the shooter as a light-skinned Black man with braids, roughly 5′7″ to 5′9″.
Read MoreJJ is Hispanic, left-handed, and had close-cropped hair; witnesses initially described a Black shooter with braids, and one witness testified that the gunman held the weapon in his right hand. A photograph taken two weeks before the crime showed JJ’s short hair. Phone records documented a 74-minute call between the residences associated with JJ and his mother, Maria Velazquez, from 11:44 a.m. to 12:58 p.m.; Maria and JJ’s girlfriend, Iris, supplied testimony about the speakers and JJ’s location, and Iris said he remained with her until about 3:30 p.m.
Read MoreAfter reviewing roughly 1,800 arrest photographs, Augustus Brown selected JJ while expressing doubt. Police then placed JJ with five non-Black fillers even though the first descriptions identified a Black shooter. The lineup results were mixed, while alternate leads and potentially exculpatory material became subjects of later litigation.
Read MoreThe case had no physical evidence connecting JJ to the scene and rested largely on eyewitness identifications. After three days of deliberation, the jury convicted him of second-degree murder and related charges. He was sentenced to 25 years to life.
Read MoreWitnesses later recanted or qualified identifications, and police records documented tips naming possible alternate suspects. The defense argued those leads were not adequately pursued; the 2016 appellate court rejected the alternate-suspect and recantation claims then before it.
Read MoreTesting excluded JJ as a contributor to the DNA mixture on the discarded betting slip the shooter had handled. The Manhattan DA reopened the case in 2022; prosecutors later joined the motion to vacate, and the court dismissed the indictment on September 30, 2024.
Read More
END OF AN ERROR · EXONERATED SEPTEMBER 30, 2024
On September 30, 2024, a Manhattan judge vacated JJ’s convictions and dismissed the indictment after prosecutors joined his motion and moved to dismiss in the interest of justice. DNA testing excluded JJ as a contributor to biological material recovered from a betting slip handled by the shooter. Prosecutors said that result, considered with inconsistent identifications and the absence of physical evidence, could have affected the verdict. Earlier litigation also challenged investigative tactics and alternate-suspect follow-up. JJ’s lawyers later alleged that a police report had not been disclosed; prosecutors disputed that claim, and no published ruling located for this archive established a Brady violation.
GO DEEPER
These four pages carry the central record from the crime and investigation through the wrongful conviction, DNA exclusion, and dismissal. The complete archive preserves every rebuilt source page, legal filing, campaign document, and reporting link.
A clear chronology of Albert Ward’s murder, JJ’s arrest and wrongful conviction, the legal and reporting fight, 23 years of wrongful incarceration, clemency, release, presidential acknowledgment, DNA reinvestigation, and exoneration.
Read MorePolice investigation
The first response, crime-scene work, broad suspect search, and investigative choices that eventually displaced the original description.
Read MoreThe identification testimony, unsupported prosecution theory, alibi evidence, hair evidence, verdict, and 25 to Life sentence.
Read MorePost-conviction
Defense evidence, prosecution responses, court rulings, disputed disclosure claims, DNA testing, and the 2024 dismissal—presented in sequence.
Read MoreWHAT JJ BUILT INSIDE
During his wrongful incarceration in maximum-security prisons, JJ became an elected liaison, educator, certified paralegal, youth mentor, program builder, fundraiser, and advocate for other innocent people. Freedom gave that work a larger stage—not a new beginning.
“This isn’t a celebration. This is an indictment of the system.”— JJ Velazquez, after his exonerationRead JJ’s current biography
A LIVING RECORD
From mutual aid and youth programs inside to prison visits, media, and public leadership outside, this record makes the work visible—not just the résumé.
Legal advocacy
During his wrongful incarceration, JJ trained as a certified paralegal and helped other incarcerated men research and challenge wrongful convictions—work he has continued since his release.
Read MoreLeadership inside
During his wrongful incarceration, JJ chaired Sing Sing’s Inmate Liaison Committee, built working relationships with the administration, and organized programs to improve life inside.
Read MoreDuring his wrongful incarceration, JJ helped unite organizations inside the prison to raise approximately $5,600 for Freeport Pride and support a customized van for Amory Sepulveda, a young Long Island woman paralyzed in a drive-by shooting.
Through the Inmate Liaison Committee and New Mind JayGees, JJ helped fund an annual school-supply project designed to lessen the hardship incarceration places on families.
Community building
During JJ’s wrongful incarceration, he co-founded a network connecting incarcerated leaders, elected officials, clergy, and community organizations. The group also raised $8,000 from inside Sing Sing for community-focused work.
Disaster relief
During his wrongful incarceration, JJ helped secure facility approval for a relief fund to offset costs for New Yorkers whose homes and lives were damaged by Hurricane Sandy.
Community safety
Co-created during JJ’s wrongful incarceration at Sing Sing, the multimedia initiative uses lived experience, peer counseling, and education to address gun violence and strengthen communities.
Read MoreYouth mentorship
Choosing Healthier Options In Confronting Every Situation helps young people impacted by crime and incarceration see the power of everyday decisions.
Read MoreIdeas across walls
During his wrongful incarceration, JJ curated TEDx Sing Sing, opening a new platform for incarcerated thinkers, artists, educators, and community leaders.
Read MoreEducation
JJ earned an associate degree in 2012 and a bachelor’s degree in Behavioral Science in 2014, served as a Hudson Link program assistant, and became a Columbia University teaching fellow.
Prison visitation
As Director of Impact and Partnerships, JJ leads prison visits that bring people across prison walls to build understanding, dignity, and public will for reform.
Read MoreJJ joined a cast of formerly incarcerated artists in A24’s Oscar-nominated film, using performance to show the humanity and transformative power of prison arts programs.
Read MoreExoneration
A Manhattan judge vacated JJ’s conviction after prosecutors cited new DNA evidence, no physical evidence tying him to the crime, and inconsistent eyewitness accounts.
Read MoreImpact at scale
JJ now returns to Sing Sing to guide visits, leads Voices From Within and Monumental Media, speaks nationally, and keeps building pathways for safer communities.
Read MoreFilm impact
JJ has used the film’s impact campaign to support prison screenings and public conversations about art, dignity, rehabilitation, and the people whose stories are too often reduced to convictions.
Read MoreSocial enterprise
As co-founder and CEO, JJ helps lead a media company centered on stories with social impact and the lived experience of people affected by the criminal legal system.
Read MoreReentry leadership
JJ serves on the board of A Second U Foundation, which supports formerly incarcerated people through education, wellness, employment, and community-building programs.
Read MoreFilm development
Permut Presentations and NBC News Studios announced a narrative feature based on JJ’s life and Dan Slepian’s reporting. The project is in development; no release date has been announced.
Read MoreWATCH · LISTEN · READ
NBC News Studios
The Pulitzer-finalist podcast built from a two-decade reporting journey, much of it recorded as the case unfolded.
Read More →A24
A stirring, Oscar-nominated story of resilience, art, and humanity featuring JJ in the ensemble.
Read More →
Watch ↗NBC / MSNBC
Dawn Porter’s four-part series follows six connected wrongful-conviction cases across two decades and won the 2025 News & Documentary Emmy for Best Documentary.
Read More →The Sing Sing Files
Dan Slepian’s book expands the record behind the cases, the reporting, and the people who refused to give up.
Read More →
Watch ↗Dateline NBC
Luke Russert’s 2012 report distilled a decade-long Dateline investigation into JJ’s innocence claim and the eyewitness evidence that drove his conviction.
Read More →Wrongful Conviction
JJ tells the story of the case, the identification failures, and the long campaign to clear his name.
Read More →FREEDOM IS A PRACTICE