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Two Arrests Made In Death Of Former Yonkers Resident Malcolm Shabazz

YONKERS, N.Y. – Two men have been detained in connection with the death of Malcolm Shabazz, a 28-year-old former Yonkers resident and grandson of civil rights leader Malcolm X.

Two men have been arrested in connection with the death of Malcolm Shabazz, the grandson of Malcolm X who lived in Yonkers during his younger years.

Two men have been arrested in connection with the death of Malcolm Shabazz, the grandson of Malcolm X who lived in Yonkers during his younger years.

Photo Credit: Screenshot/YouTube.com

Authorities have charged the two men, employees of the Mexico City bar where Shabazz was killed on Thursday, with murder and robbery, the BBC reported.

Police continue to hunt for as many as three other suspects in connection with the attack, according to the report.

Miguel Suarez, a union activist who was in Mexico with Shabazz, told the BBC the pair had been invited to the bar by a female acquaintance. Once there, the bar owner demanded Shabazz pay a $1,200 tab before a fight broke out, the BBC reported.

Shabazz was found outside the bar with “blunt-force injuries” and later died at a Mexico City hospital. The 28-year-old and his family have deep ties to parts of Westchester, including Yonkers.

In 1997, Shabazz pleaded guilty to setting a fire that killed his grandmother, Betty Shabazz, the widow of Malcolm X.  Lit in the hallway of her Yonkers apartment, Betty Shabazz was badly burned in the blaze after running through the fire, presumably to save Malcolm, who she thought might be trapped somewhere in the home.

In 2012, Shabazz said the fire was his way of rebelling in hopes that he would be sent to live with his mother in Texas.

“For anyone to lose a grandmother, that hurts,” he said in a YouTube video. “But I lost my grandmother due to my own careless and reckless actions. It’s something that I ask for forgiveness for and continue to ask for forgiveness for and I always ask for forgiveness for.”

Following the fire, Shabazz was convicted of manslaughter and arson and sentenced to four years in a juvenile detention center. His stops included time at the Leake & Watts Children's Home in Yonkers.

Following his death Thursday, Shabazz’s family released a statement, thanking supports for their support.

“Although his bright light and boundless potential are gone from this life, we are grateful that he now rests in peace in the arms of his grandparents and the safety of God. We will miss him,” the statement read as posted on the Amsterdam News website.

Funeral arrangements have yet to be announced.

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