Man Confesses to Murder for Which Twin Brother Was Convicted

“We was acting as one”, Smith testified, according to the Tribune. “He pretended to be me, and I pretended to be him”.

Prosecutors say Smith came clean only after an appeals court sustained his conviction in that crime. Smith confessed that he was the one who fired shots into a group of three rival gang members, which ended Carter’s life.

Smith told the judge he was stopped by police after the killing but identified himself as Dugar and was allowed to leave, according to Chicago Tribune.

However, Dugar’s twin Karl Smith, who is serving a 99 year sentence for taking part in a home invasion and armed robbery in 2008, in which a six-year-old boy was shot in the head, has since stepped forward claiming the law arrested the wrong man.

“He’s got nothing to lose”, a sceptical Assistant State’s Attorney Carol Rogala told a judge on Thursday, as the two brothers sat in court, identical in appearance but for their differently coloured prison uniforms. She said Dugar was jailed exclusively based on the testimonies of two eyewitnesses and that one had recanted what she said at his trial.

His brother Kevin Dugar was convicted in the shooting in 2005 and sentenced to 54 years in prison, according to the Illinois Department of Corrections.

“The reason I didn’t say [expletive] at the time was because I didn’t and couldn’t find the strength to do so at the time”.

Their mother Judy Dugar defended her son’s actions, saying Smith wouldn’t lie about the confession. “I hope Kevin will get out”.

Smith reached out to his brother’s lawyers and confessed to the murder through a sworn statement by 2014.

Smith said he did not plan to kill anyone that night, but had run into Black P Stones gang members as he crossed a street to buy marijuana. He said he shot one with his.38-caliber gun and the other with his.32-caliber.

Despite their close bond, Smith said he never told anyone about the killing, and denied his twin’s questions if he had been the gunman.

It’s unclear when Gaughan will decide if Dugar should get a new trial.