Charges against Adnan Syed dropped in ‘Serial’ podcast case: report

BALTIMORE (AP) – Prosecutors on Tuesday dropped charges against Adnan Syed in the 1999 killing of Hae Min Lee, a case chronicled on hit podcast Serial, a true crime series that revolutionized the genre, one newspaper reported.

A judge in Baltimore last month ordered Syed’s release after overturning his conviction. Prosecutors had considered retrying the case.

The Baltimore Sun reported Tuesday that a hearing to drop the charges was not recorded in online court records. Defense attorney Erica Suter confirmed to the newspaper that prosecutors had dropped the charges.

Prosecutors did not immediately respond to calls and emails seeking comment.

After District Judge Melissa Phinn ordered Syed’s conviction overturned last month, she approved the now 41-year-old’s release. He had spent more than two decades behind bars.

Phinn ruled that the state had violated its legal obligation to share evidence that could have strengthened Syed’s defense. Syed was placed under house arrest with GPS location tracking and the state had 30 days to request a new hearing or dismiss the case.

Syed has maintained his innocence for decades, drawing the attention of millions in 2014 when the first season of the podcast Serial focused on the case and cast doubt on some of the evidence, including cell tower data.