Maryland prosecutors on Wednesday asked a Baltimore court to vacate the murder conviction of Adnan Syed, whose case was highlighted in the hit podcast "Serial," telling the court that they recently discovered that former prosecutors on the case withheld evidence that could have helped Syed's defense.
A court hearing has been set for Monday in Baltimore to consider the request from prosecutors to vacate the 2000 murder conviction. Baltimore Circuit Court scheduled the hearing for 2 p.m., The Baltimore Sun reported.
Syed was sentenced to life in prison and has served more than 20 years in prison for the strangling of his ex-girlfriend Hae Min Lee, who was 18 when she was killed in 1999. Her body was found buried in a Baltimore park.
Syed, 42, has maintained his innocence for decades and captured the attention of millions in 2014 when the debut season of the "Serial" podcast focused on the case and raised doubts about some of the evidence, including cellphone tower data.
Prosecutors said in their motion that they weren't asserting that Syed is innocent but they lacked confidence "in the integrity of the conviction" and recommended he be released on his own recognizance or bail.
The case is State of Maryland v. Adnan Syed, case numbers 199103042, 043, 044, 045 and 046, in the Circuit Court for Baltimore City.