Family of Malcolm X file lawsuit in 1965 shooting death

The daughters of slain civil rights leader Malcolm X are suing the FBI, CIA and New York Police Department, accusing all three agencies of having roles in the 1965 assassination of their father.

The $100 million lawsuit, filed Friday in Manhattan federal court, claims the agencies were aware of and failed to stop the killing. Attorney Ben Crump, who represents the daughters and the Malcolm X estate, said the federal government and various agencies all conspired to kill the civil rights leader. 

The lawsuit alleges there was a “corrupt, unlawful, and unconstitutional” relationship between law enforcement and “ruthless killers that went unchecked for many years and was actively concealed, condoned, protected, and facilitated by government agents,” leading up to the murder of Malcolm X.

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“The government’s fingerprints are all over the assassination of Malcolm X,” Crump said during a news conference. “We believe we have the evidence to prove it.”

Malcolm X’s wife, Betty Shabazz, the plaintiffs “and their entire family have suffered the pain of the unknown” for decades, the lawsuit states.

“They did not know who murdered Malcolm X, why he was murdered, the level of NYPD, FBI and CIA orchestration, the identity of the governmental agents who conspired to ensure his demise, or who fraudulently covered-up their role,” it states. “The damage caused to the Shabazz family is unimaginable, immense, and irreparable.”

Attorneys also cited the killing of other Black leaders, such as the 1969 killing of Black Panther leader Fred Hampton by Chicago Police officers while he was asleep in a Chicago apartment and COINTELPRO, a series of covert FBI operations aimed at discrediting and disrupting political groups perceived as subversive. 

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Fox News Digital has reached out to the CIA. The FBI and NYPD told Fox News Digital the agencies don’t comment on pending litigation.

Malcolm X, born Malcolm Little in Omaha, Nebraska, was killed Feb. 21, 1965, at the Audubon Ballroom in Upper Manhattan while speaking to several hundred people. He was shot 21 times. His wife and daughters were among those in the audience. 

Three men were convicted of crimes in the death but two of them were exonerated in 2021 after investigators took a fresh look at the case and concluded some evidence was shaky and authorities had held back some information.

Mustafa Hassan, who said he was a part of Malcolm X’s security detail at the ballroom, said he tried to stop an armed man, later identified as Thomas Hagan, a.k.a. “Talmadge X Hayer,” from fleeing.

Police officers intervened to stop Malcolm’s followers from beating Hayer. Hassan claimed he heard officers asking each other, “Is he with us?” 

Malcolm X preached a more radical message than his contemporary, Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. He gained prominence as a major voice of the Nation of Islam, advocating for Black people to claim their civil rights “by any means necessary.” 

He eventually split from the militant group, which branded him a traitor. 

Fox News Digital’s Bradford Betz as well as The Associated Press contributed to this report.