Man freed after 19 years in prison for a $500 robbery he did not commit, Kenneth Windley, 61, walked out of a Brooklyn courthouse this week after nearly two decades behind bars for a crime he did not commit. Windley had been convicted in 2007 of second-degree robbery and sentenced to 20 years to life, a punishment linked to a 2005 Crown Heights robbery that involved less than $500.
The case against Windley arose when he purchased a stove for his mother using a money order he did not know had been stolen. Authorities traced the money order back to a robbery in which two men followed a 70-year-old man into his apartment building and stole $485 in cash along with two blank money orders. One of those orders, valued at $542, eventually ended up in Windley’s hands.
At the time, the victim identified Windley as one of the men who went through his pockets, and prosecutors built their case on that identification. Windley consistently denied any involvement, testifying that he had bought the money order from two street sellers for around $400. He acknowledged the men were “hustlers” but insisted he believed he was simply helping them by buying the order. He had never used a money order before and did not inquire whether it was stolen.
Windley’s previous felony record amplified his sentence. Convicted of second-degree robbery in March 2007, he was sentenced to 20 years to life. He spent nearly two decades in prison maintaining his innocence.
The breakthrough came after prosecutors re-examined Windley’s claims and investigated the men who originally sold him the money order. Both men were later imprisoned for a string of robberies that targeted elderly individuals returning from banks. They confirmed to the prosecutor’s office that Windley had no part in the Crown Heights robbery. Their statements were corroborated by recorded prison phone calls and emails.
Brooklyn District Attorney Eric Gonzalez formally dropped the charges, stating, “It has taken many years, but today we are able to validate his account, release him from prison and exonerate his name.”
Outside the courthouse, Windley expressed relief but also the weight of lost time. “It cost me 20 years, but they said they corrected it now. So that’s all that matters,” he said.
This case underscores the fragility of eyewitness identifications, the risks of overreliance on circumstantial evidence, and the long-lasting consequences of the justice system’s errors. Windley’s release highlights both the human cost of wrongful convictions and the importance of persistent legal review in safeguarding justice.
