Adnan was convicted after Jay Wilds, a friend of Adnan's, said in court that he helped Adnan bury Hae Min Lee's body, . I thought at worst hed throw a rock through her window or something. This week, in an interview with The Intercept , Jay Wilds came forward with his account of the January day in 1999 when Hae Min Lee was murdered. Syed and Lee were seniors at Woodlawn High School in Baltimore County when Lee disappeared in January 1999. As described by Syed to Serial, he goes to his photography and English classes and then calls his friend Jay Wilds, offering to lend him his car during his lunch period. He just couldnt come to grips with those feelings. It was at least a week before she died, when he found out she was either cheating on him or leaving him. Based on Syeds indictment date, the CrimeStoppers reward should have been paid in June, but it was not paid until November. The following has been edited and condensed for clarity. Jay is a show more content For instance, during one of his police interviews highlighted in The Case Against Adnan Syed,an officer asks Wilds, Youre sure its the 13th because we told you got these calls on the 13th? Jay responds in the affirmative. Hae was dead before she got to my house. She was still in the trunk. But she seemed to be more mature, like she was two, three, four years older than us. He just seemed like someone who didnt smoke weed too much. Jay Wilds was the star witness in the trial of Adnan Syed - the 18-year-old who was convicted of murdering his ex-girlfriend Hae Min Lee in 1999. Take my car, take my cellphone. Adnan's friend Jay Wilds testified that he helped Adnan bury Hae Min Lee's body back in 1999, but Adnan Syed mentions he had nothing to do with Hae's death. From the way he carried himself, at least, it looked like he had never lost anything before. The kind of reporting we do is essential to democracy, but it is not easy, cheap, or profitable. Who Was Mallory Beach in 'Murdaugh Murders'? I only smoked with him two or three times. A majority of the state's evidence against Adnan comes from Jay Wilds' testimony. I was also running [drug] operations from my grandmothers house. We may earn commission from links on this page, but we only recommend products we back. who has spent the past 15 years in jail for the murder of 17-year-old Hae Min Lee, . Wilds stated that he helped the 17-year-old Syed, who was accused of killing his ex-girlfriend Hae Min Lee in 1999, bury her body, which was later discovered in Baltimore's Leakin Park. Wilds, a former classmate of Syed, has been relatively under the radar since the 2000 trial that sentenced Syed to life in prison plus 30 years on charges of . how old was jay wilds in 1999 - mathtutorweeks.com And I looked real good again, and thats when I seen what looked like a foot. He later becomes a suspect because he walked 127 feet to find a place to use the restroom. It all revolves around Jay," lawyer and Syed family friend, Wilds, who gave police multipleinterviews and testified in court, was first questioned on Feb. 28, 1999, just hours before police arrested Syed on suspicion of Lees murder. Join half a million readers enjoying Newsweek's free newsletters. Get an all-access pass to never-before-seen content, free digital evidence kits, and much more! 'Case Against Adnan Syed' Finale Reveals No DNA, a Plea Deal - Vulture We are deeply disappointed by the Supreme Court, but by no means is this the end of Adnan Syed, attorney C. Justin Brown told AP at the time. than she was letting on. What we do know for sure is this: 18-year-old Lee left her Baltimore high school before 3 p.m. on January 13, 1999, to pick up a cousin. . Wilds has stayed private since the 2014 interview. Wilds was Syed's friend during the time of the murder. After class, he goes to the Woodlawn Public Library to check his email and chats with friend, Asia McClain. Lee was last seen alive on Jan. 13, 1999. Thats all it takes to support the journalism you rely on. He asked me if I had shovels, so I went inside my house and got some gardening tools. She dated Adnan in. The judge gave prosecutors 30 days to proceed with a new trial or drop the case. Theres also the added fact that Wilds boss at the time told people Wilds had to leave work several times to talk with the police before the date of that official interview. I know that he came from a very strict religious background and that he was uneasy with some of the things he was doing. We dont have ads, so we depend on our members 35,000 and counting to help us hold the powerful to account. But Wilds testimony, even though inconsistent, was corroborated by cellphone recordsas well as his friend Jennifer Pusateris testimony (at least, at first): Pusateris initial statement to the cops said that she received a call from Wilds on Syeds cell; a later statement from her included a bit about Wilds confessing to her that he helped Syed bury Lee. Everything We Know About Jay Wilds from Serial, Every Song From the Daisy Jones' Soundtrack, police may have already been looking at him as an accomplice, an adult who sold marijuana to high school kids, Your Privacy Choices: Opt Out of Sale/Targeted Ads. (Wilds would later lead the police to Lees car, parked on a residential street.) I was pretty distraught, fucked up, feeling guilty for not saying nothing. Syed's classmate Jay Wilds, who said at trial that he helped Syed bury Lee's body, became the central figure in the national conversation over Syed's guilt. Pusateris first statement to the cops said that shed gotten a call from Wilds on Syeds phone, while a later statement included information that Wilds had confessed to her that hed helped Syed bury Lee, though the police may have already been looking at him as an accomplice before theyd even spoken to Pusateri, and also bringing him him for questioning. In September, a legal team formed to represent Wilds and also quickly worked out a plea deal to testify against Syed. Syed has been placed under house arrest for 30 days until the prosecution decides whether to retry him or not. Her family reported the 18-year-old high school student missing after she failed to pick up her niece. Jay claims that once he acquired the marijuana, Adnan threatened to turn him in if he didnt help bury Haes body. It doesnt seem like enough of a reason to not talk to the police. Adnan Syed: Overturned airs on ID this Tuesday, September 27, 2022, at 9 pm ET. It wasnt like, Oh, were going bowling, and lets call it in before we go bowling and call the rest of our friends and call Jay. I dont remember ever going to any kinds of functions or endeavors together, or any concerts or clubs together, you know. Posted on July 4, 2022 by . They leave the car at a park-and-ride lot. Why is this story different from what you originally told the police? He recalls a tense meeting with Koenig, who was attempting to persuade him into participating in the podcast, and remembers Koenig telling him that there were new developments in the case. Adnan Syed freed after judge vacates murder conviction I dont know what happened, what occurred between them that day. Were sitting there smoking and he receives a phone call from the police and gets all panicky. No one is quite sure what they are, but the timing of the taps on the recording seems suspicious. Everyone Practices Cancel Culture | Opinion, Deplatforming Free Speech is Dangerous | Opinion, 'Serial' Recap: Everything About Adnan Syed's Case, Who Is Adnan Syed? And they were getting sentenced to three and five years. Phinn's decision came after prosecutors told the court they lost faith in Syed's conviction in light of new evidence and violations in the governments turning over evidence. Yes we dig for about 40 minutes and we dig and dig, and hes digging less and less. Here, we piece together the accounts as they reportedly happened in the 1999 teen murder case: While their relationship was kept a secret because of both religious and cultural differences, classmates Syed and Lee dated in 1998, and broke up in December of that year, according to court records. In it, Koenig talks to Syed who says hes innocent. The only thing that's certain: The 18-year-old victim was last seen on January 13, 1999, driving her 1998 Nissan Sentra on her way to pick up her 6-year-old cousin and then head to her job at. And Wilds was also a professed accomplice to Syeds crime, which further complicated his role as the prosecutions sole witness. He did not go to prison, though. Jay Wilds and Adnan Syed were reportedlynot close friends but the Woodlawn High School seniors fates would eventually become inextricably linked through a brutal Jan. 1999 murder case, when Syed was arrested and ultimately convicted of killing his ex-girlfriend, Hae Min Lee. "This was true in 1999 when he was a 17-year-old child. Syed is given the chance to overturn the Baltimore City Circuit Court ruling that denied him post-conviction relief, thanks to the Maryland Court of Special Appeals, Vulture reported. What happened on this particular day depends on who you talk to. Jay told the filmmakers that Adnan showed up at his house and thats where he saw Haes body, not Best Buy as he had previously stated. And detective notes capped Browns interview with the word REWARD, written in all caps. I was also around a bunch of people earlier the day [at Cathys], and I didnt want them to get fucked up with homicide. Jay also worked at the Drug Emporium store a short walk from his home. April Wolfe. Undisclosed proffers that Wilds was going to use the reward money to purchase the motorcycle, but Brown says he sold it to someone else. Killing of Hae Min Lee - Wikipedia Syed is currently serving a life sentence. From the mall where he met Syed to the time, and even which friend's homes he visited the day of Lee's murder, there are questionable aspects of his testimony. In Serial you are depicted as a petty weed dealer. She had been strangled. How old were you when you first met Adnan Syed? It wasnt until they made it clear they werent interested in my procurement of pot that I began to open up any. Syed will know his fate by August. I was a bit of an outdoorsman, adventure seeker, fishing, camping, learned to ride a motorcycle. Got called an Oreo. . Im fucking done. And Adnans like, Oh, well, youre not going to help me move her are you? And Im like No, Im not gonna help you move her. He says, Ok, well, Im gonna need you to drive back to her car., Somewhere up around a corner up a hill, parked in a strange neighborhood. Serial podcast gets a sequel as Jay Wilds breaks silence She never showed up, and was never seen alive again.. He failed; he lost the girl. Treatment of Serial's Adnan Syed Is a National Shame Jay told the filmmakers that Adnan asked him to procure 10 pounds of marijuana. He has a lot of public support and walking away is not an option.. Get all your true crime news from Oxygen. Lee had disappeared on Jan. 13, and almost a month later, on Feb. 9, her body was found by a passerby in Baltimores Leakin Park. He was having a hard enough time with that itself. But he didnt call me unless he needed something. The trial begins the second week of December and quickly ends as a mistrial, the court appeals papers say. Heres abasic timeline of the eventsof Jan. 13,according to Wilds first sit-down with police on Feb. 28, 1999: He gets a call from Syed around 10:45 a.m. on Jan. 13; an hour later, Syed arrives at Wilds house in his car and they both go to Baltimores Westview Mall, where Syed tells Wilds hes going to kill Hae because hes angry about their breakup; at 12:30 p.m., Wilds drops off Syed at school and keeps his car; at 3:40 p.m., Syed tells Wilds to meet him at a strip off Edmonton Ave., and 20 minutes later Syed shows Wilds Haes dead body in the trunk of her own car. Adnan did not know that Jay had spoken to the police. But they were just as shocked. Mr. Syed, 41, had been serving a life sentence after he was convicted in the 1999 murder of his high school classmate Hae Min Lee. Koenig's account of the events that transpired at the time of Lee's murder, publicly rebuked Jay's version of what happened and his reasons for helping Adnan Syed and portrayed him as a petty weed dealer. Investigators at the time determined that she died by . The Serial podcast threw some question marks over Wilds' version of events.. Lees mother, Youn Wha Kim, says she moved to America from Korea to give her kids a better life. Wilds was Syed's classmate at Woodlawn high school, Baltimore. It wasnt like, Oh, were down in the park, come on down.We were friendly, we were cool. He just started opening up. Lee had disappeared on Jan. 13, and almost a month later, on Feb. 9, her body was found by a passerby in Baltimores Leakin Park. EvidenceProf Blog - Typepad I know it didnt happen anywhere other than my grandmothers house. I worked a lot. At the time of her death, she was said to be dating a guy. Timelines: January 13, 1999 Adnan's Call Log Adnan's Story 7:45-9:15 a.m. 'Serial' Podcast's Key Witness Breaks Silence in First Interview - TheWrap July 1, 2016. Her body was discovered in Baltimore's Leakin Park on Feb. 9, 1999. Mr.. Ronald Lee Moore: 5 Fast Facts You Need to Know | Heavy.com He never said anything like, Hey, what gauge gun should I use? or How many minutes am I supposed to hold somebody under the water for? or, Is there a statute of limitation on murder? I thought he was just blowing off steam and bullshitting. And I found that to be a bit of a slap in the face. Lunch period 11:15-11:30 a.m. Jay drops Adnan back off at school. Getting them in trouble for anything that they knew or that I had told them I couldnt have that. Adnan Syed's ex-classmate Jay Wilds' involved in 1999 murder And soon after that, Syed was charged with her murder. I played lacrosse, was a bit of a jock. But there was a grand jury hearing on this case,andI have an idea who might have based on that hearing. I was also running [drug] operations from my grandmothers house. My Analysis of The Serial Trial and The Murder of Hae Min Lee - GradesFixer And then I would only give them information pertaining to my interaction with someone or where I was. Lets back up, tell me what happened when you arrived at the Best Buy to pick up Adnan. I didnt know that he planned to murder her that day. In. December 29 2014, 12:55 p.m. On Jan. 13, 1999, Hae Min Lee, an 18-year-old high school student from Baltimore, went missing. Im not a lawyer and Im not a cop. Meanwhile,Maryland's highest court denied a new trialfor Syed earlier this month, according to The Associated Press. Wilds then drops Syed back off at school, where he has a free period and then arrives late to his psychology class it started at 12:50 p.m., but he entered at 1:27 p.m., as his teacher notes. Jay Wilds says 'Serial' host Sarah Koenig lied about him It remains true today." Without Jay's testimony, it is highly unlikely that the state could have ever taken him to trial. He left in his car and I was trying to collect myself at my [grandmothers] house. He came back with no tools or anything. When asked about the inconsistencies in his stories, Jay Wilds told The Intercept_ that. And it was really hard for him to deal with being on the losing end. Hes gone with Haes car. Other cited factors include the discovery of new suspects and concerns about a detective who worked on Syed's case. Hoo-boy, and then theres the motorcycle story that Undisclosed says confirms Wilds was the tipster. The only thing thats certain: The 18-year-old victim was last seen on January 13, 1999, driving her 1998 Nissan Sentra on her way to pick up her 6-year-old cousin and then head to her job at LensCrafters, The Baltimore Sun reported at the time. She looked kinda purple, blue, her legs were tucked behind her, she had stockings on, none of her clothes were removed, nothing like that. Syed was actually convicted in February 2000. Moreover, a detective named Bill Ritz who repeatedly interviewed Jay Wilds was later accused in a separate case of manipulating and fabricating evidence and not disclosing exculpatory evidence. Then what happens, and what time is it roughly? How many covert wars, miscarriages of justice, and dystopian technologies would remain hidden if our reporters werent on the beat? But that, according to what I learned later, is probably not what happened. Wilds, who gave police multipleinterviews and testified in court, was first questioned on Feb. 28, 1999, just hours before police arrested Syed on suspicion of Lees murder. In The Case Against Adnan Syed, the filmmakers interviewed Jay in January 2019. The short version: On January 13th, 1999, Lee was supposed to pick up her younger cousin from daycare at 3:15 p.m. She never showed, which immediately set off alarm bells among those who knew her. Is this when you first saw Haes body in the trunk of her car? Who is Jay? Serial's star witness in Adnan Syed case gives first The student told the official that he was suppose[d] to get a ride home from the victim, but he got detained at school and felt that she just got tired of waiting and left, according to the 2019 appeal. Wilds, who was an acquaintance of Syed, confessed to helping Syed bury Lee's body, though he originally denied having anything to do with the murder. Adnan's friend Jay, who . Jay Wilds, the key witness in the Serial murder case, has broken his silence at last. Did you go to Leakin Park immediately after agreeing to help? But, like I said, I dont know how to come up with this story about how Adnan did it, why he did it, what he was thinking, how he was thinking, and why he was thinking that. He might really have just been bullshitting at the time. Number of seasons: Three. Dissatisfying is the best word I can use for that, she said in an interview with, But Wilds, who is not heard from outside of taped testimony in either Serial or the HBO documentary, stood by what he told police in a three-part interview with, It helped fan the flames of this story that people had already moved on from, Wilds told, Meanwhile,Maryland's highest court denied a new trialfor Syed earlier this month, according to. Inside Serial's Adnan Syed's murder conviction and the other suspects Adnan Syed's Legal Journey: a Timeline - The New York Times In support of their request, prosecutors cited two "alternative suspects" who were known at the time of the investigation and expert. I saw her body later, in front ofof my grandmothers house where I was living. Jay from Serial: 'I was convinced that I would be going to jail for a He said, Youve gotta help me, or Im gonna tell the cops about you and the weed and all that shit. And then he popped the trunk and I saw Haes body. Jay Wilds and Adnan Syed were reportedlynot close friends but the Woodlawn High School seniors fates would eventually become inextricably linked through a brutal Jan. 1999 murder case, when Syed was arrested and ultimately convicted of killing his ex-girlfriend, Hae Min Lee. By signing up, I agree to receive emails from The Intercept and to the Privacy Policy and Terms of Use. I didnt think he was going to go kill her. March 9, 2019, 2:00 PM. A second court proceedings begin, the papers say. in January 1999 . Anything thats going to make [Syed] innocent doesnt involve me. Biography and associated logos are trademarks of A+E Networksprotected in the US and other countries around the globe. Another person who received scrutiny in the popular podcast was Syed's former classmate Jay Wilds . He also claimedthat he felt like Koenig, whose account challenges his, tried to pressure him into giving an interview and created an evil archetype of him. The trial, which resulted in a life sentence, has resurfaced after a judge overturned Adnan's conviction. I dont know if she said something he couldnt handle, and he went off the edge or if he had been seriously speculating about it. And people were starting to find out he was a loser, Oh, you and Hae arent together anymore. . Oxygen Insider is your all-access pass to never-before-seen content, free digital evidence kits, and much more. Lee had disappeared on Jan. 13, and almost a month later, on Feb. 9, her body was found by a passerby in Baltimore's Leakin Park. The case is reopened to take into account McClains new testimony, new cell phone data and allegations of ineffective assistance of counsel as well as prosecutorial misconduct, according to Harpers Bazaar. Wilds picks him up and the two go to a friends house. Not just that, but prosecutors are also now saying a key witness -- Jay Wilds-- gave inconsistent accounts to cops. Emotions have no IQ. Maybe Jays a liar. "He might really have just been bulls******* at the time. Joining is simple and doesnt need to cost a lot: You can become a sustaining member for as little as $3 or $5 a month. how old was jay wilds in 1999 - brijnaari.com Went canoeing. I said, Isnt he a paramedic? And she said, Nah, hes cool, plus he wants to buy., I didnt trust him at first, since he wasnt like the people I knew pot smokers you know? They also highlighted the inconsistent statements of his co-defendant, Jay Wilds, who testified against him. Syed went on trial in February 2000 and was convicted of the murder of his girlfriend Hae Min Lee. . Its just on the street. He also said he helpedSyed dispose of Lees body in Leakin Park, where she was found four weeks after she was last seen alive on January 13, 1999. And hes like, Ive gotta put her car somewhere. So I follow him around for a few minutes, and he just picks a place at random behind some row houses, leaves her car, gets into his car, takes me home. The story Jay told police had problems, because it kept changing from telling to telling, Koenig says in the first episode of Serial. But they were able to bolster the main plot points using cell records from Adnans phone., Others think the inconsistencies point toward something else Chaudry says in the documentary that she thinks the police were helping [Wilds] craft the story.. That would free Wilds to then collect the reward moneyafter detectives officially filed Syeds indictment to CrimeStoppers on October 1stin November. No. Thats about burying her. Lee's body was discovered in Leakin park; three weeks later in a shallow grave. And at a certain point I say, Well fuck, Im finished. . Correction: The original version of this story incorrectly stated that Adnan Syed went to trial in December 2000. This is where people would have their house firebombed and still tell the police they knew nothing about it rather than to try to make some sense of whats going on. Mr. Syed, 41, had been serving a life sentence for the 1999 murder of his high school classmate Hae Min Lee.